


Awaited

by AkiAkabane



Category: Assassination Classroom
Genre: AU, Akito Sohma being an absolute bish, Angst, Blasian oc, Canon character/oc pairing, Characters might seem a little ooc at times, Hurt/Comfort, Lots of time skips, M/M, Possible fruits basket spoilers, Romance, Weird crossover type thing but it works, first fic, self insert basically
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-12
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-08 08:13:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 31,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26968798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AkiAkabane/pseuds/AkiAkabane
Summary: Nagisa Shiota, who is constantly abused by his mother and boyfriend, is visited one night by none other than Karma Akabane. The reason for this visit? Karma heard the soft, faint cries of someone in danger and just couldn't shake it off. Karma feels compelled to befriend Nagisa and help him in any way that he can. What he didn't expect was to fall in love with him in the process. Inspired by "Must Have Been The Wind" by Alec Benjamin.~♡
Relationships: Akabane Karma/Shiota Nagisa, Asano Gakushuu/Original Character(s)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 39





	1. Must Have Been The Wind

**Author's Note:**

> There will eventually be mentions/inferences of abuse and rape in this story, but they aren't in great detail.

It was blissfully quiet as the night continued on. Karma flicked off the last light in his apartment then headed off to his room. He walked inside the rather large room complete with a wall that was nothing but windows, a smooth, concrete floor, his bed covered in crimson red covers and a red couch along the wall of windows. He didn't have much in his room, but it was enough for him. He looked around the room, taking the sight in before lying down in his king sized bed. Pulling the crimson red covers over his person, he closed his eyes in hopes of getting some decent sleep. The warm breeze that came in through the window nearest to him smoothly gilded alongside his face. After fighting with his intrusive thoughts for a decent amount of time, he drifted off to sleep. 

Karma awoke with a start, jerking forward in a startled manner. His eyes were wide as he noticed how heavily his heart was beating and how fast his breathing had gotten. He took a moment to calm himself before he took into consideration what had startled him so bad. 

"Was that glass shattering I heard…" inquired Karma, pondering to himself. He shook his head, lying back down. As soon as his head came into contact with his pillow he sighed, slightly embarrassed that something so small had frightened him so bad. "I must've heard it in my dream…sheesh…" He trailed off, dozing off again. 

"I-I'm sorry…" cried a small, frail voice in the distance. Karma's eyes shot open at the sound of the voice. He couldn't quite make out who it was, but it sounded like a girl on the verge of tears. She sounded scared and her voice trembled ever so slightly. He could hear the faint sound of her sniffling from above him. He thinks back to the glass that startled him awake just moments ago. It sounded too real to be a dream; it scared him half to death. 

"If it wasn't a dream then the sound must've come from up there...why the hell are they being so loud, eh?" He sat up, looking up at the ceiling. He was sure of it, a glass must've broken up there and now there was a girl's soft, trembling voice apologizing to someone unknown. 

He lied back down and closed his eyes. It was none of his business, whoever lived above him was just going to have to figure out whatever was going on for themselves. 

An hour passed by and Karma was still awake despite his efforts to sleep. He couldn't stop thinking about all the commotion his neighbors had made. He hadn't heard anything after that, it was deathly silent. To Karma, the silence was so loud and overwhelming. He couldn't help but think that something could be happening out of earshot. He had been worried about the girl he heard. Thoughts of her being harmed had flooded his mind in the past hour and it killed him to think that something could be happening to her while he was just lying in bed trying to assure himself that everything was fine and could be handled by them when what really needed to happen was for him to investigate the situation and possibly be of aid to the girl. 

Tossing the covers aside, Karma swung his legs over the side of the bed, letting his bare feet come into contact with the cool, concrete floor. Pulling his red robe over his shoulders, he walked over to the door and slid his red slippers on then proceeded to exit his apartment. 

He walked down the hallway a bit until he came across the elevator. Stopping It pushed the up arrow and waited for the door to open. Once it did, he stepped in and selected the floor number above his. 

The elevator stopped and the door opened once again, but this time Karma found himself on the floor above his. He stepped off and walked down the hall. Coming across the room he was sure that was located directly above his, he knocked on the door. 

He watched as the door opened and once it did, his eyes darted to the blue hair of the person whose voice he heard about an hour ago.

"C-Can I help you sir…?" when he spoke it seemed to have broken Karma from his trance and his eyes darted to his eyes which wasn't any better. His eyes carried the same gentle blue color as his hair. Karma found it mesmerising, but he managed to get out what he came up here to find out. 

"I, uh…heard a lot of commotion coming from up here. Is everything alright?" He inquired hesitantly. Taking in his entire body, he noticed that he was wearing a long sleeve pajama shirt with a dark blue winter scarf wrapped around his neck. He found that a bit strange. Looking back at him, he noticed that he jumped slightly; Karma's face carried an intimidating look.

"I-I think you're mistaken. Thanks for caring, but I'm afraid I have to go back in," he bowed slightly before taking a step back. Karma wasn't having it, he grabbed his arm, preventing him from going in any further. 

“W-What are you doing-?”

“I know what I heard,” Karma cut him off, “Are you really okay in there?” he asked. For a moment you could see the fear in his face. He looked mortified at the thought of what might happen to him if his boyfriend found out about this little encounter not to mention if he told this stranger anything.

He breathed in deeply then looked into Karma’s mercury eyes, daring to lie to him in the most convincing way he could. His gaze was stern and he found himself not having a problem with keeping his gaze locked onto his. His eyes were beautiful. A few strands of red fell in front of his mercury eyes and at that he blushed. Who knew that red and mercury danced so well together.

“It must’ve been the wind,” he stated calmly and confidently, still gazing into Karma’s eyes. Karma gazed back, looking for any signs of uncertainty, but he found none. Letting go of his arm, he stepped back and sighed. 

“If that’s the case then I’m sorry to have bothered you…” he bowed his head briefly, muttering a quiet excuse me. He then walked away, down the hall towards the elevator. The bluenette watched as he waited for a few moments before disappearing into the elevator. 

“Nagisa! Where are you?!” yelled Nagisa’s boyfriend angrily from the other room. At the sound of his piercing voice, Nagisa winced and took off running in the direction of Akito’s bedroom. Once he came to the doorway, he stopped, panting slightly.

“I-I’m here Akito…” Nagisa said between breaths. Akito looked at him with annoyance then sighed before lying down again.

“Get back over here,” he simply stated. Nagisa knew that there was malice lurking behind the calmness in his voice. So without a second thought, he walked over to the bed and laid beside Akito stiffly. Nagisa turned away from Akito and closed his eyes. He needed to get through the rest of the night so that he could go back home in the morning. It’s not like home was any better though. He lived with his mother Harumi whom he loved dearly, but the woman was mad. 

When Hiromi was little, she was forced to prioritize studying over anything else. She was never able to dress herself up like she wanted to. Hiromi also had a lot of dreams and aspirations that she wasn’t able to pursue. Since she wasn’t able to enjoy herself like she would have wanted to, Hiromi told herself that when she had a daughter that she would have and do everything that she wasn’t able or allowed to do. However, on July 20, she bore a son. This didn’t stop her from trying to live her ideal life through Nagisa.

She often got violent with Nagisa when he didn’t want to do something of her suggestion. Oftentimes, she would hold up lavish dresses and mutter about how beautiful they looked with his long, blue hair. Nagisa strongly dislikes his long hair, but any attempt to cut it would make his mother furious. Even at the slightest implication she would beat him until he admitted how much he loved his long hair. To avoid these kinds of situations, Nagisa would just obey his mother's wishes and allow her to dress him up and style his hair just right.

It seemed as though Nagisa wasn’t able to run from the abuse in his life. As soon as he thought he found someone who genuinely loved him and that would treat him right, he was introduced to the real side of Akito. 

Nagisa thought back to the crimson haired stranger who knocked on Akito’s door moments ago. He smiled for the first time in a while. Knowing that someone was concerned for him was weird in itself; he had never been shown concern of any kind. Nagisa slowly drifted off to sleep, thinking of the crimson prince who he hoped to see again.


	2. The Girl From Before

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nagisa is a boy in this so sorry if there's any confusion with his pronouns. ^^ I made it so that Karma thinks that he's a girl in the start so I switch between the pronouns he/she depending on whose pov I'm writing from while still maintaining a third person pov.

The white rays of the sun shone through the windows and onto the satin, black covers sprawled out on Akito’s bed. Nagisa groaned as the rays found their way onto his face, causing him to turn over. He slowly opened his eyes, immediately noticing the lack of weight beside him. He sat up and looked around the room, but found no one to his surprise. His eyes lingered on the cream colored walls around him. Akito usually liked to keep a close watch on Nagisa when he visited from the time he walked through the door to the time he walked out of it. His lack of presence was unusual. 

He got up and got ready to leave. It should’ve been challenging, given the cold temperature of the apartment, but his arms and legs were completely covered. Underneath the fabric of his clothing lied a secret that he hid from all, but his mother. Since his mother tended to dress him up, it only makes sense that she’s seen them. Although, she didn't spare them a second glance. She did, however, go on to lecture Nagisa about being a better girlfriend despite his real gender. According to her, Nagisa deserved the abuse he got. Hiromi herself tended to contribute to the amount of wounds Nagisa had collected over the years. He was trapped, tangled up in the chains of both Hiromi and Akito’s.

Once he was done, he slid on his shoes and exited the apartment. As he walked down the hall, he didn’t glance back. Instead, his pace quickened and before he knew it, he was outside of the whole building. Nagisa released the breath he hadn't been aware that he was holding and frowned a bit. He was hoping to have ran into the crimson haired boy he met last night, but, ironically, it comforted him to think that this wasn’t his last time there.

Meanwhile, Karma awoke to the sound of the birds chirping right outside his window. He sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. As he did so, the realization of what day it was hit him and he groaned. 

"Today just had to be the first day of my third year…" he sighed as he got up to get ready for the day. Karma wasn't able to sleep properly last night, given that he was worried for the blue haired girl upstairs. Even after she told him that everything was fine, he still couldn't help but think that she lied. Karma Akabane, the red haired devil who screamed danger and intimidation; nobody would dare lie to him. 

"If she did lie, she's a damn good liar…and ballsy too…" he said as he pulled his black blazer over his shoulders. In the next three minutes, he was walking out of his apartment and towards the elevator. Once inside of said elevator, Karma found himself frozen. His index finger hovered over the elevator keys. The feeling of wanting to see the blue haired girl again took over. Without a second thought, he pressed the button.

The doors opened minutes later and once again, he found himself on the floor above his. He walked to the girl’s door then stopped in front of it. Looking at the room number plaque on the wall next to the door, he knocked three times. Karma wasn’t a particularly patient person, so when there wasn’t an answer he started to tap his foot on the ground impatiently. He knocked again, but this time harder. He had his mercury orbs trained onto the door and didn’t notice the person approaching him. Said person looked up from the ground and noticed that Karma was in front of his door. He stopped in his tracks, seething with anger. He wasn’t aware that Karma was his downstairs neighbor and despite that fact, Akito never got any visitors besides Nagisa and when Nagisa came over, he requested it. Nagisa would be a fool to decline his request.

“Hey! Who the hell are you and what do you want?!” yelled Akito, glaring daggers at Karma with his dark grey orbs. Karma stopped his impatient foot tapping and glanced over at the source of the yelling. Akito was rather tall with short, black hair; he was wearing a light blue shirt with a pair of dark blue pants. Karma smirked at Akito once he noticed his glare and turned to face him.

“That was rather rude~ Why don’t you tell me who you are first~” Karma said as he put his hands in his pockets.

“You’re in front of my door! I don’t have to tell you shit!” Akito yelled one more as he started to approach Karma. He stopped once he saw Karma’s shit eating grin fade away and looked at him with confusion.

“Your door...? Then...that blue haired girl that answered the door last night lives here with you? Where is she now?!” 

The look of confusion on Akito’s face morphed into something of pure horror. Nagisa hadn’t told him that he answered the door last night or that someone had even knocked on it. He figured that Nagisa had gotten up to use the bathroom or something other than go near the door. Not after what he told Nagisa; he was sure that his words alone could keep him away from the door.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, this is my room and my room alone,” he walked past Karma, roughly bumping shoulders with him before opening his door and disappearing into the room.

“Damn it…” Karma sighed as he glanced at the polished, wooden door one last time before walking away, down the black carpeted hallway and into the elevator, taking him down to where he should've gone from the start.

○○○

Karma walked down the street, casually sipping on a carton of strawberry milk. He actually thought about showing up to school on time today, but his encounter with Akito left him irritated. Instead he opted to walk around for a bit to cool his head. The wind brushed against Karma’s body and ran its fingers through his silky, red locks as he made his way to the park. It was pretty far from the school, but even still, he would try to make it back before lunch. Sitting down on one of the swings, a smirk crept onto his face and he closed his eyes. He was pretty sure he saw something purple out of the corner of his eye retreat behind the row of bushes behind the swingset.

"Boo!" shouted someone behind him as they jumped up from the bushes and grabbed onto Karma's broad shoulders. 

"I saw you coming, Aki~" Karma said as he opened his eyes; his signature smirk returning, “Why aren’t you in school~? Stalking me, are you~?” he teased. 

“Absolutely not!” Aki retorted, flicking Karma on the nose playfully, “You know this is the spot we both like coming to when we need to clear our heads! But when I saw you here already, I couldn’t help but try and scare you a little…” she giggled. Aki wasn’t like Karma in the slightest. She wasn’t a delinquent and she was thought of as more of an angel than a devil unlike her best friend. 

She sat in the empty swing next to Karma and sighed. Karma looked over at her and smiled genuinely, his eyes softened.

“Whats up?” he asked her, sounding more concerned than he looked. Karma and Aki are childhood friends and he cares for her deeply. They’ve been there for each other through everything and they never fail in putting the other at ease or being brutally honest and telling the other what they need to hear. 

“I saw him today…” Aki started, hugging her arms as if to stop herself from visibly shaking, “When I left my house this morning, he was there...across the street...j-just standing there…” Her voice trembled slightly, Karma could hear the pain that lingered in her voice. It sounded as if her voice longed to get stuck in her throat, but Aki fought with it and for that she was able to be heard. Karma looked at her sternly, listening to every word that fell from her lips. He knew exactly who Aki was referring to and that person was her ex boyfriend. Aki’s ex boyfriend who was her entire world until one day. That one day changed Aki’s whole outlook on him. He was perfect, from the cute little dates he would plan for her to the movie nights and deep conversations they would have under the stars. The second that he slapped her and screamed at her about how worthless she was was when she started to question what she saw in him. Why couldn’t she tell that who he was was a fabrication of who he really was? At that moment she started to cry and he left her there. No comfort, no anything. From that point on he was the real deal. 

“W-When we made eye contact, he kept staring at me and then he took off running...” she continued. At this point there was nothing that could stop the shaking and the memories that flashed before her eyes.

Karma got up and stood in front of her, his bangs casting a shadow over his eyes. He gently grabbed her hands and pulled her up from the swing, embracing her tightly. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes, but Karma didn't dare let that happen. Too many tears had already been spilled because of her abusive ex. 

"If it'll make you feel better, come over to my place after school; you can stay there as long as you want if you feel uncomfortable about going back home. You know you're always welcomed there, right…?" he whispered to her. It was barely audible, but she heard every word and with every word her tears evaporated. She nodded into the crook of his neck and hugged him back. 

"Thanks Karms," she smiled as she let go of him, taking her place back on the swing. She knew the other half of what Karma left unspoken. She knew how badly Karma wanted to teach her ex a lesson, but he's never seen him and she refuses to describe him out of fear. This pissed Karma off to say the least, but at the same time, he respected his friends' wishes and didn't want to make her do anything she was uncomfortable with. His day would come when they met face to face and he wouldn't show any mercy. 

"Now, what's up with you?" Aki inquired, looking up at Karma with the slightest of smiles. He sighed as he sat back on his swing, rubbing his temples. 

"My upstairs neighbors were making quite a bit of noise last night so I paid them a visit. The girl who answered the door gave off this weird vibe and I think she lied to me…" 

Aki stifled a laugh. "Ballsy."

"Right?" Karma chuckled, "Though I honestly thought she was in some kind of trouble from what I heard and it had me worried all night."

"You-"

"Don't say a word," Karma stated firmly, cutting her off before sighing. "You know what kind of person I really am and not what everyone makes me out to be. Although~ they aren't completely wrong~"

"You're an enigma to all but me," Aki got up from her swing once more. Karma got up as well and once he did, Aki grabbed him by the shoulders and looked at him sternly. "If you get the chance to talk to her again, take it. Sometimes all people need is a friend; a shoulder to lean on. Be that person for her," she smiled. 

"You know I will~ Now let's get going! I'm being a bad influence on you~" she shoved him and walked away, but he soon caught up and walked alongside her to school.

○○○

The school bell rang out through the halls, reverberating off the interior walls of Kunugigaoka High School. Hundreds of students poured out of their respective classrooms and flooded the halls. Some made their way to the cafeteria, some stayed inside their classrooms to eat, and some went off in search of their friends so that they could catch up with one another.

Aki ran through the doors of the school and threw herself at the nearest wall. She leaned against it, panting heavily as she watched Karma saunter through the doors sipping on another carton of strawberry milk. 

“Crap! Karma…” she whined as soon as she caught her breath and removed herself from the wall, “You just had to stop and get another strawberry milk drink…” 

“You could’ve left me there~” 

“Shut up…”

Karma chuckled at his friend's weary state before looking ahead. The halls had cleared out for the most part, but there were still a few people lingering. Karma and Aki managed to turn some heads when they entered the building and in that moment, Karma managed to lock eyes with the blue haired girl who stood at the very end of the hall. His eyes softened as he noticed how shocked she looked. Before he could even blink, she took off.

"Karma let's- where are you going?!" Aki shouted as Karma took off after the girl, disappearing around the corner. 

He managed to keep her in his sights despite how far ahead she was. No matter how tired he got, he urged his legs to keep moving. Watching as the girl flew up the flight of stairs that led to the roof, he groaned as he started ascending the stairs as carefully as he could. He feared that if he tripped that he would lose her. When he saw her, he was pretty surprised. He didn’t expect for her to go to the same school as him and now he was pursuing her as if she had just stolen something from him.

Karma forcefully pushed open the door leading to the roof then leaned against it, panting. He didn't linger there for long. Instead, he found himself walking towards the petite figure in front of him. She was sitting with her back against the fence, hugging her knees to her chest with her head down. Karma loomed over her, but she refused to meet his gaze. He didn't say a word as he took a seat next to her. 

She baffled him; she really did. Karma had only known her for a few minutes and yet he was somehow drawn to her. He wanted to know more about her as well as the man he encountered earlier that morning. He wanted to know their connection to one another. He felt like he knew what was going on; he felt as though this girl might be trapped without any certain way out. He also got the feeling that she was completely alone. What he was thinking left a bad taste in his mouth. The only way for that horrid taste to subside would be to find a way into the girl's life so that somehow he could get her out of it and into a new.

"Let's talk~"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aki's my oc, be nice to her. uwu


	3. The Conversation On The Rooftop

Nagisa lifted his head up slightly and glanced at Karma curiously. He had no idea why this person had taken interest in him all of a sudden. Apparently his claims of being fine didn't reach him like Nagisa had hoped. Deep down, Nagisa was actually happy that he was able to see him again. But at the same time, he had no idea what to say to him. He could lie, but would his lies come out as convincingly as the last? And what would happen to him if Akito finds out he told Karma anything or even finds out that he’s befriended Karma when or if that time comes? Nagisa really didn’t want to find out the answers to those questions. 

The school bell rang out once more, startling Nagisa. He got up, ready to make a run for it when a strong hand grabbed onto his wrist. 

"Wait~ We’re not done here~" 

Nagisa's eyes widened and his breathing picked up. It didn't matter that it was only Karma who grabbed his arm, he still went into panic mode. He was frozen with beads of sweat adorning his face. 

"L-Let go of me!" stammered Nagisa as he slowly recovered from his frozen state. He stood there stiffly, afraid to make any sudden movements. "Please…? A-And don't hurt me…please…"

Karma's grip on Nagisa's arm loosened at the sound of his frightened pleas. With a sigh, he let go of his arm completely and stepped back. The air suddenly smelled of petrichor and the clouds and sky both showed signs of darkening. Nagisa took a deep breath then exhaled, calming down and reevaluating his situation. He swiftly turned to Karma and bowed, apologizing profusely; the idea of getting to class on time completely forgotten. 

"Whoa, whoa, it's alright! I'm sorry as well, princess~” 

“Prince...and It’s fine.”

Nagisa’s statement took Karma aback a bit. His feminine physique, his seemingly long, blue hair, his voice, and those eyes. Those beautiful blue orbs that tended to pierce through him intensely. It scared Karma so much that he wanted to run away; never to come into contact with him again. He didn’t know how to deal with this intense fear that Nagisa made him feel; when encountering Nagisa both times, it felt as if the air around him was heavy. How could Nagisa make him feel this way? He seemed so innocent, so frail. Just when it was seeming like he could keep his guard down around someone it turned out that he couldn’t.

Karma raised an eyebrow at Nagisa who was still staring intensely at Karma. Despite his uneasiness, Karma smirked, his sharp canine teeth showing. “I think it’s about time we knew each other's names~ What’s yours~?”

“N-Nagisa Shiota. A-And who might you be?”

“Karma Akabane~ It’s a pleasure~”

“Nice to meet you Karma,” Nagisa smiled. Karma Akabane, huh? He could finally put a name to his face. Nagisa sat back down and sighed, giving up on going to class at all. Karma looked at him quizzically, standing in front of him.

“Don’t you wanna go to class...?”

“Not anymore...you wanted to talk, right? Well...now’s the best time to do it.” 

With that being said, Karma took a seat next to the bluenette. He hadn’t expected to confront him anytime soon and now he was being given the chance to converse with him. The revelation about his gender shocked him as well. He felt as if he didn’t have the right to try and intrude on Nagisa’s life. He didn’t have all the facts that he thought he had, only inferences and clues. Even now, Nagisa wore that scarf around his neck that was cotton and dark blue in color. Karma was pretty sure that wearing scarves went against the dress code and since it was the first day of their third year, the teachers and staff were pretty lenient, only letting students off with a warning for the day; a warning which he assumed Nagisa had gotten. The wind brushed past the two boys, it’s warmth lingering. It was fairly warm outside so Karma was especially curious as to why Nagisa felt the need to wear that scarf. 

“Not scared that we’ll get caught in the rain~?

“I-I don’t care that much…”

Karma let out a hum in response. He didn’t want to take the conversation too far, but at the same time, he wanted to acquire some information from him. He glanced over at Nagisa’s petite frame. Nagisa’s eyes were downcast; his face wore a slight frown and his eyes were dull. 

“Nice scarf,” Karma complemented. At this, Nagisa visibly tensed up, his eyes widened. There was a pregnant pause before he answered.

“Thanks. M-My...boyfriend got it for me,” Nagisa managed to get out. Karma only nodded. He made sure to pay close attention to Nagisa’s body language and how he spoke. He spoke carefully and with that last question, Karma noticed his hesitancy to answer.

"So I'm guessing that tall guy with the short, black hair I ran into this morning is your boyfriend?" 

Karma waited for the bluenette to answer, but his answer never came. While sitting there in the silence, tons of possibilities ran through his head. Karma Akabane is indeed the cunning, mischievous, sadistic person everyone knows he is. However, Karma lives for putting people in their place that deserve it as his name implies. You'll find Karma fighting delinquents who often bully other students or you'll find him fighting them just for the sake of being delinquents. Because they could be better, but they're choosing not to and often inevitably cause others pain and misfortune. Karma has never been one to bully or cause others misfortune for no apparent reason. Sure, he likes to joke and tease, but it's in a playful, non threatening way. In short, Karma's a bitch and he makes sure who ever needs to know it does. 

Karma has a caring side deep down, but for some reason it's more apparent when it comes to Nagisa. He was genuinely worried about him, but he tried not to let it show. A wet droplet of rain fell onto Karma's nose, followed by other rain droplets around the two. He looked over at Nagisa who didn't seem to care as he stated earlier. As the rain started to fall around them, Karma turned to Nagisa, his gaze now piercing into Nagisa intensely, but not with the same intensity as Nagisa's stares. This forced Nagisa to look him in the eyes with a sort of wonder. 

"Listen, I was really worried last night you know? It sounded like glass forcefully being thrown at a wall and shattering into a billion pieces. Then, I heard you…your soft apology to who I assume is your boyfriend. You sounded like you were in so much pain…you sounded like you were in danger," Karma took a breath before continuing. "I know I don't know anything at all about you and I can't just jump to my own crazy conclusions no matter how much I want to and no matter how much I think I'm in the right. 125; that's my room number. If you ever need someone to lean on, please, consider me. For now, with the little proof that I have, I'll say it must've been the wind." 

Karma reached into his bag and pulled out a black umbrella. He opened it and held it above Nagisa's head; Karma smirked. 

"Take it why don't you~? Return it to me later~" Nagisa, still in a daze, took the umbrella from Karma's grasp, their fingers brushing against each other briefly. This caused a faint blush to appear on Nagisa's cheeks, one that Karma couldn't see. Karma then stood up and turned to leave. He stopped momentarily, as if his clothes weren't drenched enough and looked back at Nagisa, a genuine smile adorned his face. The clouds parted in the distance, allowing the sun's brightly dim rays to shine onto Karma. Nagisa only stared at him in amazement as he left the roof, disappearing into the building only to be seen again if he chose. 

It had been so long since someone had shown Nagisa true kindness. He lacked that in life. He also lacked a shoulder to cry on. Nagisa continued to stare at the door Karma left out of as the rain came crashing down on the umbrella he was given, the soft sounding pellets soothing him. Nagisa was ready for a change in his life, a change that he was scared to make happen on his own. He knew Karma was the key to everything changing for the better. He noticed Karma's confidence. He wanted to know what true confidence felt like. He chose.

○○○

The school bell rang out for the last time that day. Karma emerged from his hiding spot outside of the school and watched as everyone poured out of the building.

"So much for going to class today~" he said as he watched Aki approach him, purple umbrella in hand. She narrowed her gaze at him. 

"Where did you run off to all of a sudden?!" 

He smirked as he started walking, Aki following suit. "Remember that girl I mentioned earlier? she nodded, " It turns out that he goes to our school~ I saw him standing at the end of the hall and I just let my feet do what they wanted in my moment of surprise~" he said, putting emphasis on the word he. 

She chuckled. "Apparently you can't see. How did you mistake him for a girl?" she inquired, looking up at her red haired friend. 

"Trust me, if you meet him then you'll see." 

She didn’t say anything, only humming in response. They walked down the street of Karma’s apartment complex in silence. Aki looked around at all of the surrounding houses; they were huge, luxurious houses that she could never afford to live in. Karma’s parents were wealthy so it was no surprise that Karma lived on such a street that seemed to only call for people of a high status to live there. She frowned slightly at the thought of Karma's parents. They left him here all alone. Sure they would hire a maid to take care of him, but that was never what Karma wanted. He wanted his parents to be the ones to take care of him. He wanted their love and support, not some strangers. Every time he would drive the current maid away, his parents would just hire another one. They didn’t even bother to scold him about how he shouldn't do that. When Karma reached a certain age and he had scared his maid at the time away, his parents stopped hiring maids. They thought that he was able to take care of himself, but Karma just thought they stopped caring. 

A week after he had scared off said maid, Aki had been there when he curled up on his bed and started to cry. There she sat at the foot of his bed with teary eyes; she had never known Karma to cry over anything. His parents had wounded him, something that no one else could achieve. His cries were faint, but her heart ached. She shuffled closer to him and started to rub his back soothingly. At first it seemed as though her comfort wasn’t doing anything to calm Karma, but soon enough his crying stopped. Karma turned on his back to look at Aki, tears still streaming down his face. At the sight of his tear filled face, a single tear ran down Aki’s cheek. 

“Don’t think I’m weak...I’m just hurt…”

“I know...you being weak hasn’t even crossed my mind...don’t think that just because you cried that you’re weak,” she smiled at him before continuing. “I think it actually makes you strong; mentally strong”

He wiped his tears away and chuckled. “Only you would say something like that~ But thanks...really.” 

He embraced her in a hug and she returned it. “You’re the only family I’ve ever had...and you’re the only family I'll ever need...” he whispered to her.

She smiled at that as they continued to embrace each other. Eventually they lied down and went to sleep like that. 

"Aki, you doing okay?" inquired Karma, taking Aki out of her reverie. 

"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking of the past."

"Don't. That frown tells me it was something rather unpleasant…"

She thought about confirming his suspicions and telling him about her remembrance of that day, but she kept to herself. She didn't want to remind him of it. Yes, he still remembered it as clearly as any other day, but he learned to shove the memory to the back of his mind and focus on the present. 

The rain became less violent with each passing moment, now only gently tapping the surface of Aki’s umbrella. She closed her umbrella as they entered the tall building. 

Once they got to Karma's room and walked in, they took their shoes off at the door. As they walked in further, Aki looked around at the surrounding space; red walls adorned with golden picture frames, white, marble tile floors, and a crystal chandelier hanging from the high ceiling. 

"Whoa…"

Karma chuckled then waved her over to where he was standing in the doorway of one of the rooms. "Hey, your room's over here~"

"I'm coming!" She ran over to him as he walked into the room. She walked in shortly after him and again took in the surrounding space. The room was beautifully lit due to the white curtains hung up to the windows; there was a queen sized bed with red, silky covers on it and a huge red carpet under it with beautiful black and gold designs on it. She looked up to find a similar looking chandelier hung from her ceiling, but this one was golden with candles on it. The surrounding walls were white. 

"Jeez, anymore red and I'd go crazy," she smiled and turned to Karma. "Thanks for letting me stay here for the time being. I really appreciate it." 

He reached up to ruffle her ash mauve locks. "Think of this as your second home. Now, what's for dinner~?" 

"Just because I'm staying here doesn't mean I'm cooking you dinner, Bakabane!"

"Fine, fine~ We'll go out for dinner then~ Say…7:00~"

"That's better; sounds good!" he smiled as he left her room, closing the door behind him. He then walked to the bathroom to take a shower.

○○○

He started walking towards his room, his gaze downcast. He didn't want to look at the surrounding area of his home. It was too fancy for his taste, but his parents "only got the best for him." Of course, who was he to deny them? It was either this or nothing at all. They wouldn't dare pay for something a mere commoner would inhabit. He walked into his room and looked up. It was simple and kind of plain, it wasn't a lot, but it was just enough for him. Not too fancy like the rest of his apartment. If he was going to live there, he at least wanted his room to be different, an escape from what his parents thought was best.

He walked over to his bed and lied down on it. He stared up at the snowy ceiling, his thoughts drifting to Nagisa. He wondered if he was up there right now and if so, he wondered why he hadn't bothered to come by his room. He decided that he would take a nap before they left for dinner, so he pushed those thoughts aside and slid under the crimson covers, letting sleep take over him. 

A few minutes later, there was a knock at the door. Not long after that one, there was another. 

Aki sighed, bookmarking her page in the book she was reading as she got up. She put it down on the cherry wood night stand next to her bed then left her room and headed for the front door. 

"What? Does he not hear that? Jeez…" Aki mumbled under her breath. She opened the door and came face to face with who she thought was a blue haired girl. 

"Can I help you…?"

"O-Oh, uh…is Karma not here…? 

"No, he is. He's probably just sleeping before dinner. And you are…?"

"Nagisa Shiota! I go to school with Karma apparently and he lent me his umbrella," he said as he handed Aki the black umbrella. "Could you let him know I stopped by to return it?"

Aki took the umbrella and smiled. "Sure thing."

"Thanks!" Nagisa said before turning on his heel and leaving. Aki then closed the door and hung Karma's umbrella on a hook by the door, her conversation with Karma about the mysterious girl he had met turning out to be a boy forgotten. 

Aki walked back to her room as Nagisa walked into the elevator. 

"That girl must've been Karma's girlfriend…she's pretty…" Nagisa thought aloud as he pressed the button on the elevator. "I wonder how he treats her…" 

He shook the thoughts of Aki and Karma out of his mind as the elevator stopped. He got off and exited the apartment building and walked home.

○○○

"I'm home!" Nagisa announced as he walked through the front door of his apartment.

"Welcome back, Nagisa! How was school, sweetheart?" inquired Hiromi, a sickly sweet smile on her face. 

Nagisa's heart skipped a beat. He hadn't attended any classes after lunch due to his encounter with Karma. What if the school called and she already knew? Was she toying with him just to see if he would tell the truth? Nagisa didn't know how to answer his mother. Hoping that his school didn't report his absences, he decided to lie to her in the most convincing way he would. He looked at his mother and sighed. He didn't sense any malice behind her words. 

"School was good, mom."

"That's wonderful, Nagisa dear. Have a seat! Dinner's ready!" 

Nagisa nodded and took a seat at the dinner table. Hiromi brought out two plates of sushi and set one in front of Nagisa then the other in front of herself. Nagisa was hungrier than he originally thought; the smell threatened him to drool, but he held himself together. 

"Thanks for the meal!" He picked up his chopsticks and took a piece of sushi from his plate and plopped it in his mouth. The chewy goodness provided an immaculate taste that Nagisa savored. Suddenly, Nagisa became very dizzy, causing him to drop his chopsticks. He looked up at his mom, that sickly sweet smile still on her face. Nagisa struggled to keep his eyes open as he tried to form a sentence. 

"M-Mom…? Wh…What did you…?"

"Maybe you'll think twice before lying to mommy, dear," the moment she spoke, Nagisa sensed nothing but malice behind her words before everything went black.


	4. Molding New Beginnings When The Past Comes Knocking

Nagisa woke up with his mother sitting beside him in the driver's seat of her car. He sat up groggily and looked around. He looked out of the windshield and noticed that the car was parked on a cliff. Frightened, Nagisa turned to his mother who was staring into the distance.

“Where are we…?” he asked, still trying to grasp the situation.

“Nowhere really, dear. Why don’t you step out of the car for me?”

“Y-You drugged me!” Nagisa shouted, panic setting in. He had always known that his mother was a little unstable, but he never expected her to drug him and drag him out in the middle of nowhere. The amount of anger boiling inside Nagisa was nothing like he’d ever experienced.

“It was for your own good, Nagisa. Both yours and mine. Now get out,” she demanded in a stern tone.

Fearful of what she might do if he disobeyed her, he got out of the car and slammed the door shut. His mother did the same then walked to the edge of the cliff; she motioned Nagisa to follow her.

“Mom, what are you- ow! Hey!” he shouted as she grabbed a fistfull of his hair, pulling him closer to the edge.

“I have had enough of you! You disrespectful little brat!” she spat, “It ends here, tonight! In a month after I’ve “healed” from your death, I think i’ll go out and adopt a beautiful little girl and try to fix where I went wrong with you…”

Tears started to well up in Nagisa’s eyes and not because Hiromi’s grip on his hair tightened. He was utterly helpless in this situation and his heart ached. It ached because out of all the people in this world, his mother should love him and be the last person who would want him dead despite all of the abuse she’s put him through.

“M-Mom please! I’m your only son! Rethink this!”

Nagisa internally cursed himself for his word choice. Maybe if he would’ve used daughter instead on son then she wouldn’t be seething with intense anger. She shook him violently, trying to make him lose balance, but Nagisa fought back as much as he could. He could hear the ground beneath him start to crumble and become less stable.

“Mom!” Nagsia shouted, making one last attempt to reach her. She ignored him as she continued to try and push him over the edge. Nagisa grabbed onto HIromi’s wrists, making it difficult. With him holding onto her like that, they’d both fall. She had to find out a way to loosen his grip on her so she could finally push him over the edge.

“Mmm...there’s a lot of commotion over here~ What’s going on ladies~?” said a tall, lanky man as he emerged from the woods surrounding the cliff. He slowly approached the two, seemingly unbalanced and mumbling under his breath. Hiromi and Nagisa both had stopped moving at the sound of his voice. Nagisa’s eyes wandered to the man’s right hand and his breathing hitched. He was holding a butcher’s knife and he gradually raised it higher the closer he got to the two.

“M-Mom, let me go! We have to get out of here! Huh…?” he felt the warm rage of his mother melt away. He turned in her direction and found her backing away, trembling at the sight of the crazed man. He then turned back to the man and started to look around for a way out.

“P-Please...take my son! Spare me!” 

Nagisa’s heart sank to the pit of his stomach. That was the last straw; he hung his head down, his bangs casting a shadow over his eyes. Letting impulse take over, Nagisa looked up and into the eyes of the man. He stared at him intensely, causing the man to stop in his tracks and break out in a cold sweat. In the next minute, Nagisa was in front of the man and the butcher’s knife was now in his hand.

“W-What- ugh!” Nagisa kicked the man in his stomach and he doubled over. Nagisa then punched the man in the face and watched as he fell to the ground. Hiromi watched in shock as her son climbed on top of the man and brought the butcher’s knife to his face. At that moment, she really feared her son. He had never shown this side of himself to her; he’s always been this weak pushover who she could do anything to. Was he building up hatred and anger within him all this time? If so, she was witnessing what happened when Nagisa was pushed too far and she was glad that she wasn’t the one Nagisa was pointing the knife at.

“Now you-” Nagisa gasped as he snapped out of it, pushing himself off of the unconscious man. He dropped the butcher’s knife and backed away. Was he really about to kill this man? Was he really capable of something like that? Sure, he had learned to read people given the mother he had, but had he also built up so much anger and frustration that he was able to be pushed to the brink of madness; escaping to the depths of his mind while his subconscious took over?

He shook those thoughts away for now and turned to his mother. She stared back at him and his gaze towards her turned into a glare; the memories of her drugging him resurfacing in his mind. Nagisa got up and walked to his mother's car. As soon as he opened the door, he reached into her purse and pulled out her phone.

○○○

The police arrived at the scene 30 minutes after Nagisa made the call. Even while they were waiting for the police to get there, Hiromi still stood in the spot where she had froze; Nagisa opted to sit in the car, his gaze never leaving the man.

It turns out that the man was Kousuke Mitsue, a 33 year old man who was reported to police three weeks ago for a homicide that occurred at his house. Eye witness reports claim that they saw Kousuke flee from the house in a hurry and he was seemingly covered in blood with a weapon of some sort in his hand. It turns out that he had taken shelter in the woods nearby. One of the policemen turned to Hiromi.

“May I ask what you were doing out here, m’am?”

“I-I uh-”

“She drugged me,” Nagisa cut in, “Then when I woke up, we were here. She was trying to push me off the edge of the cliff until that man came stumbling out of the woods.” The policemen turned back to HIromi after having his attention focused on Nagisa.

“M’am, is this true?”

Instead of answering the policemen, Hiromi just stood there and stared at them before bolting away. Both of the policemen immediately ran after her. It didn’t take long for them to catch her since she was wearing high heels; she had kicked them off mid run which had sowed her down a bit. Nagisa watched as the policeman handcuffed his mother and shoved her in the backseat of the police car with Kousuke.

Nagisa fell to his knees; he was finally free of his mother. Seeing her inside of that police car put his mind at ease and he was glad things turned out the way that they did. If Nagisa would’ve survived the night and went home with his mother, he would’ve never been able to forgive her for drugging him and trying to kill him on top of that. Even with her behind bars, he’ll never be able to forgive her, not for this. Nagisa actually wondered how life would’ve continued if that would’ve been the outcome. Would he have decided to run away? Or would he have stayed with his mother and continue to let her abuse him, secretly harboring hatred inside of himself until he snapped?

“Would you like us to call someone to pick you up?” asked the policeman. Nagisa shook his head.

“I’m fine, thank you. I know a friend who lives nearby; i’m sure they’ll let me stay the night if not longer. I’ll also be sure to notify my dad about this,” he responds, bowing politely to the man.

With a nod, the policeman joined his partner inside the car then Nagisa watched as they drove off. As soon as he was sure they were gone, there was nothing that could stop the tears that started to stream down his face. He shouldn’t be crying, he was finally free, but it still hurt. Nagisa started to walk, making his way out of the woods as he wiped the remaining tears off his face.

○○○

Nagisa stood in front of Akito’s door and contemplated knocking. It was pretty late; what if Akito was sleeping and he woke him up? Nothing good would come out of that. He smiled when he remembered that Karma stayed on the floor below, but then he shook the thought away. If Akito found out that he spent the night over another boy’s house then nothing good would come out of that either. He sighed as he knocked on the door.

Every second that Nagisa stood there waiting for an answer was agonising. He knocked again, but this time harder. That time, the door flew open, revealing a grumpy looking Akito in his boxers.

“Nagisa, what the hell?!”

“Akito, I’m sorry I came here unannounced, but I need a place to stay, please! I can explain more to you later…”

“I want one now! Who the hell do you think you are waking me up out of my sleep without an explanation as to why?!”

“M-My mom...s-she just got arrested for trying to kill me...a-and before she could, we were attacked by a crazed man and I just don’t feel right going home all by myself...I’m shaken up…”

“She failed to kill him…? What the hell was she thinking?!” he mumbled under his breath.

“Akito, please! I’ll ask my dad if-”

“Hurry up and get your ass in here!” Akito shouted, cutting him off. Nagisa jumped slightly, but didn’t hesitate to run inside and get settled.

Once he was settled, he walked into Akito’s room and lied beside him. Nagisa didn’t necessarily feel safer with Akito than he would’ve in his empty home, but the last thing Nagisa wanted right now was to be alone. He needed somebody with him so much that he didn’t care if that person was Akito. 

Nagisa’s body stiffened as Akito grabbed Nagisa’s waist and pulled him closer to him. It was gentle at first which made Nagisa’s heart flutter. It was the first time in a long time that Akito was that gentle with Nagisa. The hold that was once gentle gradually turned into a death grip. His waist was in a lot of pain, but Nagisa fought the urge to cry out in pain, remembering the time that Karma came over because he heard him crying. Akito brought his lips to Nagisa’s ear and bit it harshly. Nagisa didn’t even wince; he just lied there, staring blankly at the wall, praying that Akito was too tired to do anything.

“How did it feel to almost die…~” he whispered almost seductively into Nagisa’s ear; it made him sick.

After minutes of waiting for Akito to release him, he gave up and let sleep consume him, wishing that he would’ve gone home instead of walking straight into the lion's den.

○○○

Karma awoke from his nap with a stuffy nose. He sat up and groaned, still feeling fatigued. Throwing the covers off of himself, Karma immediately felt the cold night’s breeze graze every inch of his bare skin. Shuddering, he wrapped up in the covers and immediately felt as if he’d been transported to the pits of hell. He settled for sticking his right leg out of the covers while keeping the rest of his body covered which didn’t help.

He watched as his bedroom door slowly opened, allowing the light from the hallway to shine in. It stopped and he watched as Aki peaked her head through the small crack, a pout on her face.

“Karma, heeeey! You said we would go out and eat dinner and it’s ten minutes past seven! Karma…?” she opened the door all the way and walked over to his bed where he lied half asleep, groaning. She felt his forehead and frowned, running out of the room. She came back with a cold cloth then pushed back his red strands of hair and placed it on his forehead.

“Karma, you’re burning up…” she said softly.

“I am…? Huh...go to dinner by yourself then…”

“I’m not leaving you here like this! Looks like I will be making dinner tonight,” she chuckled, “This is what you get for walking in the rain without an umbrella.”

“But Nagisa needed it…”

“Oh! Speaking of Nagisa, she dropped your umbrella off while you were napping.”

“Silly~ Nagi’s a boy~ Guess I never told you the name of the boy who I mistook for a girl...heh” he sounded almost delusional. Aki’s eyes widened at his statement. She had completely forgotten about their conversation on the way home when she answered the door; the lack of knowing Nagisa’s name didn’t help though.

“Akiiii! It’s hot and cold at the same time! Make it stooop!” he mumbled irritatedly.

“I can’t Karms, you’re sick; that's all it is,” she explained before leaving the room to get dinner started.

○○○

“I’m so late!” Aki yelled as she ran into the school. She had spent all night taking care of Karma and got to sleep late. And of course, he caused a bit of trouble for her, doing things like refusing to take his medicine and refusing to stay in bed. In the end, she got him to take his medicine and fall asleep. By the time that happened, she had collapsed onto his cold, concrete floor and fallen asleep herself.

She walked into her classroom and looked around as she walked to her desk. Just like the day before, she had missed her morning classes, but at least she made it in time for lunch. She caught sight of a familiar blue head of hair and smiled, changing directions from her desk to Nagisa’s. Grabbing a vacant chair, she placed it in front of Nagisa's desk and sat down. Her eyes darted to Nagisa's neck and she noticed the faint bruises that resided there. 

“Hey, Nagisa! I had no idea you had this class!”

Nagisa scratched his cheek nervously. “Y-Yeah, well...I didn’t eat lunch here yesterday and after lunch, I didn’t return to any of my classes,” he said, whispering that last part. He grabbed a piece of sushi out of his bento and plopped it into his mouth as Aki grabbed her lunch out of her bag. “Oh, is Karma here today too? I heard his name get called for attendance.”

“No, sorry; he caught a cold from walking in the rain yesterday.”

“He did?!” Nagisa yelled a little too loudly. The few students who stayed inside the classroom to eat lunch turned towards him, causing him to hunch over and lower his voice. One person in particular kept staring at Nagisa when the rest of the heads he had turned returned their focus to their lunches. 

Nagisa sighed. “I-I feel bad now...he only gave his to me because I didn’t have mine…”

“Don’t sweat it! It’s actually really unlikely for Karma to show kindness like that to anybody,” Aki explained, waving her chopsticks in the air excitedly as she spoke. “It means he must really like you.”

Nagisa smiled at that. He knew he had a good feeling about Karma and it turned out that he might like him as well. After last night’s events, Nagisa felt like he needed to find better people to have in his life, not that he needed people around him constantly to function. Nagisa was very independent and preferred to be alone, but it got lonely.

“Hey, I know this is late, but what’s your name? I don’t think you’ve told me before.”

“Eh?! I’m sorry about that. My name’s Aki Izanami! I’m Karma’s childhood friend.”

“Is that why you’re staying at his house?” Nagisa thought aloud. Realizing what he said, he bowed his head, “I’m sorry, that was rude! I shouldn’t have assumed that!”

“It’s fine!” Aki assured.

"Well then, Aki, is it alright if I come over later to see Karma?"

"Yeah, it's fine. I'll be sure to tell him you're coming." 

With that, she cleaned up after herself, got up and put the chair back where it belonged before heading to her desk. Just as she sat down, their teacher walked into the classroom. Their sensei was a tall, skinny man with dark black hair that spilled over his face. He wore a white t-shirt and a pair of grey pants. Along with that, he wore a bright smile that seemed almost alien. 

"Alright students, let's start with a math lesson, shall we?"

The class groaned in unison. 

"Can't we lounge around like we did yesterday~? It's not like anything you teach us will help our grades~" one boy said from the back of the classroom, kicking his feet on top of his desk. He had short, spiky two toned hair and he was known as being a bully to the weaker students. 

"Now, now, Terasaka. There's still hope for those grades of yours if you study hard. And…how about a little motivation~?"

"I'm listening…" 

"Nehehe," their sensei chuckled. If it were possible, his smile would've spread longer across his face. "Let's see if you can kill me before graduation. Metaphorically speaking of course. If you succeed then I'll do whatever each of you asks." 

"So what? You want all of us to take turns driving you mad until you decide you can't take it anymore and quit?"

"Precisely, however, I doubt that you can accomplish that~ I wish you all luck!" 

"Piece of cake!" One student shouted. 

"I was born for this moment!" Another shouted. 

"Hold on boys and girls. There is a catch~"

"Come on, sensei, what is it?" Aki inquired, anxious to see how far she would be able to come in this "assassination." 

"I'm going to teach you boys and girls everything you need to know and in return, you'll pay attention and do your best to score high on all your assignments and tests. If you fail to act to the best of your abilities, I'll call off this little "assassination" and…I'll bow up the earth!"

There was a moment of silence then everyone sweat dropped. 

'That's not something you say so freely in a school of all places!' they all thought in unison. 

"I'm sure that's impossible for a mere school teacher to pull off…" said a brown haired boy sitting in the front row. 

"I have a few connections, Isogai, but let's keep that between us," their sensei said as he brought his index finger up to rest against his lips. 

Nagisa raised his hand timidly. "Uh, sir? Aren't you at all concerned for your mentality?"

"There's nothing to worry about when I'm sure you'll get nowhere! Now class, care to prove me wrong? You've got all year~"

"You're on!" they all shouted. 

Their sensei then turned his attention towards Terasaka. "Well Terasaka? What will it be?"

He smirked, pumping his fist in the air. "You're on!"

"Alright! Now that that's settled, let's get on with the lesson~"

○○○

"Alright class, that's it for the day! Terasaka, your insults were weak and Maehara, your constant blow horn impersonation sounds didn't faze me one bit. Let's try harder next time, shall we?"

"Yes sensei…" they said in unison before leaving the classroom. 

"Nagisa, could you hold on for a bit?" 

Nagisa frowned then looked at Aki who smiled softly at him. He couldn't help but look at that smile as if it were a frown. "I'm sure it'll be quick. Come over when you're all done." she said before leaving. 

He nodded then, after everyone had left the classroom, walked up to his desk. 

"Nagisa, I have to hand it to you…what you did today stunned me. For a moment, I actually had to sit down and wonder about all of my students personal lives. I thought about how each and every one of you could be hurting on the inside and how you all could come from bad homes and it's done something to me…" he sighed before continuing, "If I may ask…what made you do something as bold as threaten to jump out of the window? When I doubted that you would do something so risky, you took off running towards it without hesitation…I'm worried…" 

"I'm so sorry I made you feel that way, sensei! Even though that's kind of our goal, I didn't mean to do something so morbid! It won't happen again!" he said, bowing his head. 

"Are you sure, Nagisa…? If not, I'm all ears."

"I'm sure! I guess I'm just really excited to see if I can succeed." he lifted his head and smiled. 

"Now, Nagisa, I don't want you or any of the rest of my students to cause harm to themselves just to get to me. That's against the rules and I'll be sure to let the others know tomorrow. If all is well then you may go." 

"It is! Thank you!" Nagisa said before he took off running out of the classroom. He didn't stop running until he got outside of the building. It didn't take long for him to catch his breath and as soon as he did he started walking. The thought of Karma being sick resurfaced in his mind. He felt awful for accepting Karma's umbrella. If he hadn't, he'd be the one sick, not Karma. Since there was nothing that could be done about it now, Nagisa took off running in the direction of the nearest store.

○○○

Nagisa entered Karma's apartment complex and made his way to Karma's room. Once he was there he stopped and knocked on the door.

"Coming!" Aki shouted as she ran out of her room and towards the door. 

"Mmm…Aki…keep it down…" Karma mumbled in his room, nowhere near loud enough for Aki to hear. 

She opened the door and was greeted by Nagisa who was holding a basket in one hand and a mini pot in the other. 

"Since I felt bad, I brought him a few things if that's okay." 

"It's alright," Aki said as she stepped inside to let Nagisa in. 

"The kitchen's down this hall to the left if you wanna put that pot down and warm up what's inside," Aki offered. 

He nodded and did just that. After he was done, he somehow managed to find the living room where Aki happened to be. This apartment was like a maze to Nagisa. One wrong turn and he was sure he'd get lost for sure. He looked over at Aki who was reading a book. Feeling his presence enter the room, she put the book down and jumped up. 

"Come on! I'll take you to Karma's room."

"Alright!" 

So Nagisa followed Aki around the house, silently mapping out his way to Karma's room just in case he ever needed to remember how to get there. They came across a huge crimson door with the letters K and A carved beautifully onto the front. Aki knocked two times before slowly opening the door and peeking in. 

"Karma…? You have a visitor~"

"Eh…?" Karma groaned as he sat up, "Oh yeah…Nagi was supposed to be coming…"

'Nagi?' Nagisa thought. He didn't know when or why Karma had decided to start calling him by that nickname. He must've been really out of it. 

"Yep!" Aki stepped to the side, allowing Nagisa entrance to the room. "I'll be in the living room, Nagisa. Meet me there when you're done here," she said before leaving the two. 

"What's up, Nagi~? I heard you wanted to see me~" Karma teased. He still managed to tease people in his ill state. 

"Y-Yeah…I felt bad for taking your umbrella and getting you sick so…I got you this!" he shoved the wooden basket onto Karma's bed. Karma eyed the package suspiciously then smirked. 

"What's this~? Awww, was somebody worried about me~?"

"Shut up and open it," Nagisa grumbled with a slight pout. 

Karma grabbed the basket and eyed the contents inside more carefully. What he noticed first made him forget how to speak properly as he reached for it. 

"Yum milk…" he mumbled, picking up one of the cartons of strawberry milk. Nagisa perked up. 

"You like those?! I'm glad!" he smiled. He wasn't sure what Karma liked since he just recently met him, so he got what he thought he might like and made plans to learn what he liked later on. 

"I love these," he said before puncturing the carton and taking a sip of the strawberry milk. The flavorsome taste made his taste buds dance even though they tended to act against him in his time of sickness, making all food taste like slop. 

"There are also a few more things in there along with a card, but I'll let you enjoy your "Yum milk"," Nagisa giggled as he got up and left the room. Karma's fingers danced alongside the red card Nagisa had mentioned before his departure. 

"I'll save that for later~" Karma said as he sucked the last bit of strawberry milk from the carton.

○○○

It has been two weeks since Nagisa visited Karma at his home. Nagisa smiled, not really listening to the lesson Koro-sensei was teaching. Koro-sensei had been a name that Nagisa's fellow classmate Kayano Kaede had come up with for their teacher a few days ago. In the past two weeks, everyone had been trying their hardest to crack Koro-sensei. In the end, they were always tired and out of ideas so Kayano dubbed him unkillable and gave him the nickname Koro-sensei.

Today, Karma finally attended class and had been almost as excited as everyone else had been when Koro-sensei told the class about his little “assassination” idea. Karma spent the whole day trying to break Koro-sensei, but to no avail. It turns out that Karma is one of the smartest kids in their class. He got every assignment done within five minutes of getting them and never got a single answer wrong. Being that smart gave him extra time to try and drive Koro-sensei crazy, but even with that extra time, he hasn't managed to do anything. 

"Alright, class dismissed." Koro-sensei said as he got up from his desk and silently left the classroom. 

All of the other kids left the classroom one by one until only Nagisa and Karma were left. As Nagisa finished putting his belongings in his bag, he noticed that a dark shadow was being cast over him. He looked up and screamed, falling out of his chair. Karma had walked up to him quietly and managed to scare him. 

Karma stifled a laugh. “Sorry about that, Nagisa,” he said as he held his hand out for him to grab. Nagisa took it and Karma pulled him up; it wasn't until Karma let his hand go that he noticed just how warm Karma was.

“I-It’s alright...so, what’s up?”

“I was wondering if you wanted to come over to my place?”

“S-Sure! I’d like that…”

“Alright then~ follow me~” he said, turning to leave the classroom, Nagisa following behind him. As they walked together in the halls, they passed a short brown haired kid who appeared to be on the phone, eyeing them suspiciously. They didn’t think anything of it and kept walking until they were out of sight.

“Yeah...they just left...I told you they seemed like they were getting close! Eh? Do you know who the hell that is?! But- fine…” the brown haired kid sighed as he hung up the phone. “Akito owes me big time…” he said as he followed the two out of the building. 

Aki had left the classroom before Karma. So she was already halfway to Karma’s house. As she was walking, she saw a familiar looking black limousine driving down the street in her direction. She noticed that it started to slow down as it got closer to her so she stopped. The limousine stopped right in front of her and she watched as one of the tinted windows rolled down, revealing strawberry blonde hair.

“Hey Asano,” she greeted.

“Hello, miss Izanami. Where are you headed? I recall your house being in the opposite direction.”

“I’m, uh...headed to Karma’s place. He’s letting me stay there for a while.”

“At Akabane’s? Are you sure about that? You should stay as far from that delinquent as possible.” 

“Gakushu, I’m fine, really. I’ve known Karma for as long as I can remember and I know he’d never do anything to me.” 

“Fine. You have my number if things do go south. I’ll have that Akabane behind bars before the hours up.”

“I’ll be sure to call you if that happens,” she chuckled. Aki and Gakushu have been friends for as long as Aki has been friends with Karma. Karma and Gakushu never got along though, so Aki had to spend time with her two best friends separately. They both tended to be a bit too overprotective of Aki and never liked it when she was with the other and not them. However, Asano was the top student in their class. He often hung out with the other top students and was heavily admired by the students whose grades weren’t perfect, but they still tried their best, striving to be just like him. Karma was second ranked and Aki was third, but since Karma and Gakushu didn’t get along and Gakushu always tended to have somebody or a whole crowd around him, Aki tended to hang out with Karma more much to Gakushu’s dismay. This made the two a bit closer.

With a smile, Aki watched as Gakushu’s limousine drove away then continued to walk the rest of the way.

Karma and Nagisa continued their walk to Karma’s place in silence. Mercury eyes glanced back at their surroundings, making the bluenette worried. 

"Is everything alright? You keep glancing back…"

"Tch…it feels like somebody's watching us…"

"What?!" Nagisa whisper yelled, not wanting to alarm their stalker. 

"Hey, calm down, scaredy cat~ Maybe I'm just looking into things too much~ Relax~" 

"I-I can't! W-What if someone's really-" Karma grabbed Nagisa's hand, stopping him mid sentence. His heart that was pounding minutes ago calmed down. He looked up at Karma with a questioning look and the redhead smirked at him, causing Nagisa's heart to skip a beat. 

"Everything's fine, I promise," he assured. The warmth from Karma's hand spread throughout his entire body, making him feel safer. Karma gave his hand a small squeeze as if saying "I'm here and I'll protect you." 

"I believe you," Nagisa smiled. They continued to walk and even after they arrived at Karma's apartment complex, Karma still couldn't help but feel a pair of eyes burning holes into the back of his head. 

They walked inside and made their way to Karma's room. Nagisa stopped for a moment to take in the surrounding area. It felt different to be coming to that apartment complex with Karma at his side, to go to Karma's room and not Akito’s, to not be used. 

Once they got to his floor, Karma unlocked the door and walked in along with Nagisa. 

"Let's hang out in my room," Karma said as he looked at Nagisa, avoiding looking at anything else. 

"Alright," he smiled as Karma turned on his heel and made his way to his room. Nagisa looked around the apartment as he followed Karma to his room. It was beautifully decorated unlike Karma's room which was stylish in its own way. He wondered why it seemed like the boy would rather stay in his room when he had such a lovely apartment to get lost in. 

Stopping in front of his door, Karma opened it and allowed Nagisa to walk in. 

"Make yourself at home~"

"In that case…" Nagisa walked over to the king sized bed in the middle of the room and lied on it. It felt as if he was lying on a cloud and it took everything in him not to fall asleep. 

"Whoa…"

Karma chuckled. "Soft, right? That was my reaction when I first lied on it too."

Nagisa sat up then looked at the bookshelf across his room. He got up off the bed and walked toward it. Scanning the various books and comics, a certain one caught his eye. He picked up the skinny comic and happily flipped through the pages. 

"You like Sonic Ninja?" he asked as he closed the comic. 

"Well, I like the director and I heard there’s gonna be a new movie coming out soon. Wanna go see it with me?” 

Nagisa smiled. “I’d like that.”

“By the way~” Karma started, “I liked the gifts you brought me when I was sick~ I even think the soup you brought helped me get better~” 

Nagisa blushed. “W-Well, I’m glad you liked everything…” he looked down and Karma noticed the sad look on his visage. “No one’s ever liked the stuff I’ve gotten for them...they always just shrug it off like it means nothing to them…” he put the comic back in its place then returned to Karma’s bed and sat on the cloud like surface.

“Really? Man...some jerks they are…” was all Karma could think to say. He had no idea what Nagisa’s life was really like and he wasn’t going to pretend that he knew. 

“Hey, Karma…? What’s your family like?” Nagisa asked, changing the subject.

“They’re free spirits is all I can say. They haven’t been around much.”

“O-Oh…” Nagisa felt a blush rise to his cheeks in embarrassment. He didn’t expect such an answer when it seemed like Karma and his parents were loaded and they got him everything he wanted. He soon came to realize that that didn’t necessarily mean that they were always around. Without thinking, Nagisa launched himself at Karma and wrapped his arms around him. He thought that Karma would think badly of him after this, but for some reason he didn’t care; he just knew that they both really needed a hug. To his surprise, Karma wrapped his arms around him as well. Nagisa could feel the warmth radiating off of Karma, their chests pushed up against each other. He felt safe in Karma’s arms and never wanted to let go. Suddenly, there was a loud banging at the front door, causing them to pull apart.

“The hell…” Karma said, glaring at his bedroom door as if there was someone knocking on it. He then got up and left to greet his unexpected visitor.

“They sound angry...” Nagisa mumbled as he got up and followed Karma out of his room. As they got closer to the front door they heard someone yelling. 

"Aki…? You bitch! What are you doing here?!"

Karma and Nagisa appeared behind Aki who had already answered the door. She stood there stiffly, her eyes wide with fear. She started slowly backing away from the door, now trembling.

“N-No…” she mumbled.

“Aki?!” Karma and Nagisa both yelled in unison, causing the person at the door to look at them. Their eyes landed on Nagisa and they glared at him. Nagisa looked at them fearfully, his heart sank.

“A-Akito…”

Akito shoved Aki completely out of his way, causing her to forcefully collide with the wall next to her. 

“Aki!” Karma shouted before running towards Akito. Nagisa, however, grabbed his arm, stopping him.

“No! Please! This doesn’t have to become worse than it already is!”

Karma grits his teeth as Akito makes his way to Nagisa and grabs his arm. 

“And you! What are you doing here?! And in this room of all rooms! I saw that read headed bastard at my door the other day looking for you! Is there something going on between the two of you?!”

“No! There isn’t!”

“Don’t lie to me!” he said as his grip of Nagisa’s arm got tighter.

“Ow! H-Hey!” 

Akito ignored Nagisa’s cries of pain as he started dragging him out of the room. Karma took this moment to run over to Aki and make sure she’s okay. Falling to his knees next to her, he inspects her for any injuries.

“Are you okay?!”

“I-I’m fine…”

He nods, rising from his spot on the floor. He runs out into the hallway and immediately glares at Akito who was still walking down the hallway with Nagisa in tow.

“Hey! The hell is your problem?!” he takes a small breath and approaches Akito, Akito having stopped in his tracks. “You can’t just waltz into my room like that, shove my best friend into the wall, and drag my guest out against his will~” he says menacingly. “Who do you think you are…?”

“Besides Nagisa’s boyfriend, that’s none of your damn business,” he spat before disappearing into the elevator.

Karma quickly made his way back into his apartment and picked Aki up off the floor, carrying her to her room. Walking over to her bed, he laid her down.; she immediately curled up.

“You okay? You seemed pretty shaken up before he pushed you,” Karma states.

“Karma...it’s time you knew something.” 

Karma raised an eyebrow. “I’m listening...”

“That man...that was my ex boyfriend...A-Akito Fuji.”

At this Karma’s eyes widened and he slowly got up from Aki’s bed. Aki peered over her shoulder just in time to see Karma exiting the room.

“H-Hey, wait!” she called out, but her words fell on deaf ears. Once Aki jumped out of bed and left the room, Karma had already left the apartment.

○○○

Karma made his way up to Akito’s room and picked the lock. It was fairly easy considering this wasn’t his first time doing it. He walked in and made his way to the only bedroom in the apartment; what he saw made his blood boil. Akito, who was naked, was on top of a naked, unconscious Nagisa whose hands were tied to the headboard of the bed with his legs apart.

“What the hell is this?!” yelled Karma. At this, Akito whipped his head in the direction of Karma.

“How’d you get in here?!”

Instead of answering, Karma launched himself at Akito and landed on top of him. He started throwing punches at his face and he didn’t stop for a second, not even after he saw a line of crimson red oozing from the corner of his mouth or the purple-ish black color that started adorning his face. He thought that each punch he landed would make him feel better, that it would be enough revenge for every single minute that Aki had to spend with him, for every single agonizing moment Nagisa had to spend with him. Not wanting to be labeled as a murderer, Karma stopped throwing punches the minute he was sure Akito had fallen unconscious. Blood oozed from his arm from a gash in his arm that Karma had made. Karma climbed off Akito then made his way over to Nagisa and untied him. There were white sheets and clothing on the floor and whatever bedding remained on the bed was hanging off.

“You must’ve put up quite the fight, Nagi…” He said as he wrapped one of the discarded sheets around Nagisa before running out of the room.

He ran to the elevator and once the doors opened on his floor, he continued to run all the way to his apartment. He never stopped; once he ran into his apartment, he ran all the way to his room and threw some of his clothes on Nagisa. They were a bit big, but they would have to do for now. After he dressed the little bluenette, he picked him up again and slung him over his shoulder before running to Aki’s room. He stopped in her doorway and took a deep breath.

“Aki, come with me! We need to leave, now!”

Aki, knowing that Karma did something reckless, got up and followed him out of his apartment and all the way out of the building.

○○○

An hour later, they found themselves a few blocks away in a neighborhood of houses that again, just like Karma’s street, seem like a place only people of high status would live. They walked up to one of the houses and Karma knocked on the door. They watched as a strawberry blonde kid answered the door.

“Gakushu?” Aki questions. He smiles sweetly at her then glares at Karma. “Akabane...what do you want?” his eyes fall onto Nagisa’s limp body “And-” 

“Asano, listen. Please let us stay here! Your dad’s away, right? Please, I’ll explain later and I’ll owe you big time.”

Asano smirks. “Akabane Karma begging me for a place to stay and owing me…?” he was about to turn them down but then he looked at Aki again, her eyes pleading for them to stay. He sighed. “Alright, we’ll discuss this more in the morning. Just know that I only have one extra bedroom, so you all will have to share” he looks at Aki, “On second thought, you can take my room tonight if you wish.” 

Aki smiles and takes his offer. With that decided, Asano led them inside and directed Karma to the extra bedroom. Aki, who already knew where Asano’s room was, goes to his room and gets settled for the night.

Once Karma gets into the room, he lies Nagisa on the bed then looks at Asano, “Thanks for this number 1~” he teased.

He only sighed and rolled his eyes before leaving the room. He made his way to his room and knocked on the door. 

“Come in,” Aki shouts only loud enough for Asano to hear. He walks in then closes the door behind him.

“What did I tell you earlier?! I’m only one call away! What did Akabane get you involved in?!”

Aki looked at Asano as tears streamed down her face. His heart stopped at the sight of her crying. He went over and sat down next to her on the bed and embraced her in a hug. She returned it and hugged him tighter as the flow of tears grew stronger. Gakushu just sat there, rubbing her back soothingly until she stopped. 

Aki sat up and wiped the remainder of the tears off her face, “Hey, Shu...remember my ex boyfriend I told you about…?” She didn’t miss the way his face scrunched up in pure disgust.

“Go on…”

“W-Well...he showed up at Karma’s apartment. I answered the door not knowing who it was, then he pushed me into a wall…”

“And Akabane did nothing to protect you?!”

“I-I think Nagisa held him back so things wouldn’t escalate...but I’m fine...I’m pretty sure he handled him when he chased him out of the room.”

Aki blinked in surprise as Gakushu planted a kiss on her forehead before getting up. “I’ll have the police all over that building and come morning, he’ll be a dead man…” he turned on his heel to leave.

“Wait! G-Gakushu, when you’re done, could you come back…? I don’t wanna be in here alone…”

He smiled softly at her and nodded. “Let me just gather up some extra pillows and blankets, make a quick phone call and I’ll come right back,” he said before leaving, closing the door behind him.

○○○

Nagisa woke up an hour after they arrived at the Asano residence. He looks over at Karma who was sitting at the foot of the bed seemingly lost in thought.

“K-Karma?! Where are we?! W-Where is he?!” he asked frantically.

Karma’s head snaps up at Nagisa. “You’re awake!...he’s far away from here and we’re at an acquaintance’s house for the time being...Nagisa, he tried to-”

“I know!” Nagisa shouted, tearing up, “I know...h-he told me exactly what he was going to do before he knocked me out…” he sat up and hugged his knees close to his chest, trying to keep it all in. That failed, however, and the tears came rushing down his face. Karma moved closer to him when suddenly, Nagisa embraced him in a hug.

“Thank you so much!” he exclaimed through tears, “If you hadn’t come and got me…”

“There’s no thanks necessary…” Karma whispered as he started to rub his back soothingly. After a moment, Nagisa’s cries stopped and they separated.

“Why don’t we get some sleep? I’ll take the floor,” Karma said as he got up.

“Actually...could you stay up here with me…? I-I’ll feel a lot more safe if I have someone like you next to me…”

Karma was too tired to argue with him and he wouldn’t feel right if Nagisa wasn't able to get comfortable. “Sure, I feel honored~” he joked as he climbed into the bed next to Nagisa. They both lied down backs facing each other as they slowly drifted to sleep.


	5. The Argument That Almost Tore Us Apart

Karma awoke from his slumber, groaning as he did. He tossed the covers aside and sat up, trying to listen closely to the faint voices in the distance. At the familiar sound of the bluenette's voice, Karma then realized that he was no longer in bed with him. 

After he got dressed into his usual attire, he left their temporary room and decided to join the others down stairs. It had been two weeks since Karma fled his apartment building with Nagisa and Aki. The very night they fled, the police arrived there and scoured the place. It wasn't long before they found Akito in his room still unconscious from the beating Karma gave him. They took him into custody with no question, given that Asano had told them everything they needed to know before they got there. 

Karma walked into the living room where Nagisa, Gakushu, and Aki were and stood in the doorway. He watched as Gakushu said something which made Nagisa and Aki laugh. It made Karma smile, seeing that Nagisa was having fun. During their first week at Asano's house, Nagisa had slowly opened up to Karma and told him about Akito and a little about his mother; he was afraid that Nagisa was incapable of having fun or even smiling genuinely after all he’s been through.

○○○

Karma and Nagisa left the movie theater after watching the new Sonic Ninja movie. Both had smiles on their faces as they walked down the dimly lit street. Nagisa absentmindedly grabbed onto Karma's arm and leaned against him, making the taller boy look down at him in surprise. Karma blushed slightly then returned his attention ahead.

"Hey, Karma…? Nagisa said as the cool nights breeze brushed past them, making him shiver. 

"Hm?"

"I, uh…I want to talk to you…a-about Akito a-and my mother. I need to tell someone instead of keeping everything inside…and right now, you're the only one that I can truly say I trust." 

'His mother? What did she do to him…?' Karma thought. Up until this point, Nagisa had never mentioned his mother to Karma. 

Karma hesitated before answering Nagisa. He wasn't exactly the type to go to if you needed to talk. Karma's answer to everything was using his fist. It wasn't until he met Nagisa that he actually came to realize that he can't answer everything with his fist. 

"Alright then. Start talking."

Nagisa beamed, his mouth slightly agape. He wasn't sure how Karma would react when he told him he trusted him so immensely. The fact that Karma was allowing him to talk told Nagisa that he's someone truly worth trusting and there's more to Karma than meets the eye. No longer beaming, Nagisa held his head down slightly as he thought of how to start this conversation. 

"It was my second year of high school when I met Akito," Nagisa started. "And it was his third. When our relationship started, he was the sweetest most caring person I had ever met. He never touched me, and when he did he was gentle."

Karma's heart lurched when Nagisa started talking about how Akito used to treat him. His voice was soft and he had started to stroke Karma's arm with his thumb lightly. To Karma, it sounded as if Nagisa still loved Akito, like he cherished the thought of who he was before he started abusing him. Karma hated that it seemed like Nagisa didn't know what real love was. He had never experienced real love himself, but he knew damn well that it doesn't matter how someone used to be, or rather pretended to be if in the end they became, or all along was, this abusive, manipulating person. 

"After a few months of dating him, I told him about how my mother treated me and he honestly looked hurt…" Nagisa continued. "He embraced me and told me that I didn't have to go home to that and that I could stay at his place…a-and that's when it started…that same night."

Karma's fist balled at his side so tightly that you could see the white of his knuckles. Nagisa stayed oblivious to the anger boiling inside of Karma. Karma tried his best to keep his composure for Nagisa’s sake. If he blew up in front of him, that could just frighten him or worse: make him feel like he was in the wrong for everything and that everything was ultimately his fault; doing that could cause him to fall into despair. He took a deep breath in through his nose then exhaled through his mouth; Nagisa heard it and tensed up.

“Not once did I think about leaving him...I just thought I deserved everything I was going through...my mother’s abuse and her trying to make me into the girl she’s always wanted, Akito’s abuse...and overall, I just wanted them to love me...I felt like they were all I had…” he looked up at Karma, a single tear fell from his eye, “But now I have you! You saved me from them even if you don’t think you did! When I’m around you...I feel like anything’s possible...anything at all, so...can I ask something selfish? Can I ask for you to never leave me or treat me like I don’t matter?”

At this point, they had stopped walking and faced each other. Karma looked into Nagisa’s soft azure eyes with his wide mercury ones. So many emotions fled through Karma during Nagisa’s little rant: anger, sadness, frustration, admiration, and something else that he couldn’t quite put a name to. Whatever he was left feeling at the end, he had never felt with anyone else and he would never admit it, but he liked the feeling. He thought that keeping Nagisa around for a while would be a good idea. That way, he wouldn’t have to worry about him getting himself into any danger and he could protect him until, perhaps, he learned to protect himself.

“I won’t leave you and I won’t treat you like you don’t matter because you do...and I mean that~” he said while wiping the tear from Nagisa’s cheek. Placing his hand on top of Nagisa’s hair, he ruffled it before he started walking again. “Come on~! Let’s go back to Asano’s.”

Nagisa stood there for a moment before running after Karma. “Coming!”

○○○

“Bakabane! How long are you going to stand there?” yelled Aki, snapping Karma out of his reverie.

He blinked then looked over at Asano who had a scowl on his face and stuck his tongue out at him. He then turned to Nagisa, the look of confusion etched onto his face. He smiled his usual shit eating grin then walked over and joined them on the couch, sitting in between Aki and Nagisa; Asano was located at the end of the couch, next to Aki.

“Sorry about that~ I didn’t wanna ruin the fun little conversation you three had going on~ With that being said, good morning Aki, Nagi,...first place~” 

“You insufferable delinquent! Would you quit with the names?”

“I could, but I won’t~ Where’s the fun in that~?”

Aki flicked Karma on the forehead, earning a cry on pain out of him. “Behave!” 

She then turned to Asano and smiled. “Now that Karma’s awake, we can get breakfast started,” with a nod they both stood up. As Aki walked past, Nagisa grabbed her arm and looked up at her.

“Actually...I was thinking I could help out with that. Since I’m staying here too, I want to help out.”

“I don’t mind,” she said as she sat back down next to Karma. The two watched as Nagisa and Asano disappeared behind the corner before they decided to speak again.

“So, how’s he been doing?” Aki inquired.

“Ever since we went to the movies last week, he’s seemed noticeably happier to me,” Karma smiled, his glance returning back to the corner that Nagisa disappeared behind. “He opened up to me a bit about himself and I’m pretty sure that has something to do with it.”

“I’m glad to hear that...ever since he tried to jump out of the classroom window to try and get to Koro-sensei I’ve been pretty worried…”

“He did what?!”

“He never told you?! Shit...Karma-”

Karma jumped up from the couch and found his way to the kitchen before Aki could finish her sentence.

Asano and Nagisa both looked up from what they were doing and at Karma.

“Akabane, can you not wait for us to be done?” he asked before he averted his gaze and continued to cook.

“Hey Karma! What are you-” Nagisa got out before Karma grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the kitchen. Nagisa could feel the anger radiating from Karma and was left to wonder what he did if anything to make him feel that way. Karma opened the front door to Asano’s house and pulled Nagisa outside, shutting the door behind him.

“Karma, what-”

“When were you going to tell me that you tried to kill yourself, eh?!” Karma yelled loud enough for anyone in the vicinity to hear.

“W-What? What are you-?

“Cut the crap! Aki told me that you tried to jump out of the classroom window! And just to get to Koro-sensei?! Your life is more precious than that, Nagisa!”

“Karma, please, tone it down a bit…everyone around us can hear you...”

“I don’t give a shit! Let them hear!” Karma turned around to face the street and looked around, having been facing Asano’s house. “There’s barely anyone out here anyway,” Karma took a breath then suddenly his eyes flew wide open and his breathing hitched; his heart was palpitating and a few beads of sweat rolled down the side of his face. He swiftly turned back around to face Nagisa who had his finger pointed at Karma. He fearfully looked at Nagisa who opened his mouth to speak, yet never got the chance.

“That felt as if you were stabbing me through my chest…” Karma muttered.

“H-Huh…? Karma, can we-”

“Nagisa, go away.”

Nagisa was taken aback by Karma’s statement and he felt a sudden pain in his heart. “What? Where the fuck am I supposed to go?! My mother’s in jail for trying to kill me and I have no idea where my dad is!”

Karma felt the anger within him rising once again at Nagisa mentioning that his mother tried to murder him, he was never informed about the incident, but even still, he didn’t let that cloud what he had set his mind to right then.

“Why don’t you just go home? Without your mother there it sounds a lot safer, don’t you think? I can’t have you around me anymore...”

“Fine...I’ll do just that…” Nagisa said, glaring at Karma which sent a shiver down his spine.

Nagisa ran off, resisting the overwhelming urge to cry. Karma watched as he fled, feeling a sense of regret, but he felt as if that were the best thing to do. Nagisa was dangerous, he could tell. He couldn’t have him kill him one day if they were to end up on bad terms. He just didn’t feel safe. In the end, he had broken his promise to Nagisa to never treat him like he didn’t matter; Karma had done just that. After a while, he decided to go back in and join the others. 

As soon as he walked through the door, he was met with Aki and Asano.

“I have neighbors you know…? Now I’ll have to apologize for your little outburst, Akabane,” Asano spat before leaving to eat the breakfast that he finished by himself.

“Karma, what the heck?! Why’d you send Nagi away like that?!”

“Don’t worry about it...I just came back in to tell you that I’m going back home,” he said before leaving again. Aki thought about stopping him, but she resisted. She saw the pain in his eyes; he looked almost lifeless. She didn’t know what exactly occurred for Karma to send Nagisa away like that, but she could tell that it pained him deeply. Since there was nothing she could do about it now, she rejoined Asano in the dining room to finish her breakfast.

As soon as she sat down, she started stuffing her face with the fluffy, crisp waffles drowned in maple syrup. Looking up at Asano, she saw that he was smirking at her. She licked the syrup from her lips.

“What are you smirking at?”

“Were you able to get any answers out of the big red wolf~?” he teased.

“No….” she pouted. “Oh, he did say that he was going back home.”

“You aren’t going back there with him, are you?”

Aki took another bite of her food as she pondered Asano’s question for a minute. She did want to go back to Karma’s place if only to keep an eye on him, but she also felt as if he should resolve what’s going on between him and Nagisa himself. In the end, she decided to give Karma a little space to sort things out.

“If it’s alright with you, I’d like to stay here.”

“O-Of course it is,” Asano said before getting up and clearing his spot at the table. “You know you’re always welcome here and I’d like it if you’d spend a little more time with me as it is.” 

Aki blushed a bit as Asano left the room, leaving her to finish.

○○○

A month has passed since Karma sent Nagisa away for his own safety. That incident, however, didn't stop the two from attending class everyday, but Karma, being his usual self would miss a few days or arrive late with no good excuse as to why.

Today happened to be one of those days. Karma came waltzing through the classroom door, strawberry milk in hand. Nagisa couldn’t help but watch his every move.

"Mr. Akabane, this is the third time this week. Are you even trying to get here on time?" Koro-sensei inquired. 

"I'm afraid not, teach~ but don't worry, my grades are just fine~ they might be the best in the class~"

Koro-sensei sighed as Karma took his seat. 

"Alright class, I have a special announcement for you all," 

"Are you calling the "assassination" off?" asked Maehara disappointedly. 

"Are you giving us the rest of the day off? asked Sugaya. 

"No homework?" asked Okajima. 

"No. No. And nice try~" the class sighed in unison. "I'm bringing in two professional assassins to train you all in the arts of assassination!"

There was a moment of silence before the class erupted. "Why the hell are you doing that?!" they all yelled in unison. 

"Well, you guys aren't getting anywhere so far so I thought I'd help you out a little. Maybe the thought that someone is constantly trying to kill me will make me snap. You should be thanking me!" 

"Oh yeah? We don't need your help! We'll figure it out!" they all yelled again. 

"Well it's too late for that!" There was a faint knock on the door before a man and a woman both emerged from it. 

"Ah, here they are! Class! I'd like to introduce you to Tadaomi Karasuma and Irina Jelavic. They'll be the ones teaching you in the arts of assassination!" 

"This is ridiculous…" muttered Karasuma. 

"Tell me about it…" muttered Irina. 

"Hey! Why the hell are her boobs so big?! Someone with boobs that big shouldn't be allowed to teach!" yelled Kayano. 

"Listen here you little brat! I can do whatever the hell I want!" yelled Irina. 

"Now, now, everyone. Settle down," said Koro-sensei, standing in between his students and the new coming assassins. "Now, I'm going to leave you in Mr. Karasuma's hands for the rest of the day. Me and Irina are gonna step out and have some adult time~"

The class watched as Irina punched Koro-sensei in the head and stormed out of the classroom. 

"In your dreams, octopus!"

'Octopus...?' the class thought in unison.

○○○

After class ended, Mr. Karasuma left and Koro-sensei came back in. Nobody had left yet, instead, they were busy chatting about what they had learned from Karasuma. Aki looked away from Isogai and watched as Nagisa left the classroom. Feeling a sudden tap on her shoulder, she turned around and looked at Karma.

“I haven’t seen much of you lately~ Don’t tell me that you’ve traded me out for Asano~” Karma teased, a playful pout on his face. 

“I’ve been staying at his place, yes, but that doesn’t mean I’ve traded you out for him,” she chuckled.

“That’s all I needed to hear. See ya~” 

She watched as Karma left the classroom then resumed her conversation with Isogai.

Karma had left the classroom a little while after Nagisa, causing Nagisa to be in his sights walking home. He usually waited longer to leave, knowing that they both took the same route home, but for some reason Karma felt as if he should go home as soon as he could. Nagisa was pretty far ahead of Karma and for this Karma was thankful. He hated to admit it, but he actually missed the small bluenette. Not a day went by where he didn’t think of Nagisa. He thought about him so much that he contemplated if he was really dangerous or not. But deep down, Karma knew what he felt, he knew danger when he felt it. Something inside of him longed for Nagisa, danger and all.

“H-Hey! Let go of me!” shouted Nagisa as he squirmed in the grasp of two men. 

“The hell? Where’d they come from?!” Karma stopped and watched the event unfold in front of him. He waited to see if Nagisa could pull through without any help until he saw one of the men’s hands go under Nagisa’s shirt. The other man pulled out a white rag and held it up to Nagisa’s face and Nagisa fell limp in their arms soon after. After seeing that, he ran full speed towards Nagisa and punched one of the men in the face, knocking them down onto the ground. He then kicked the other one, causing him to land on top of his partner. He was sure that they weren’t unconscious, but he couldn’t worry about that now. He picked Nagisa up bridal style and continued walking towards home.

After he entered his apartment, he walked straight to his room and laid Nagisa down on the bed. Dread and worry flooded Karma’s entire being as he began pacing the room.

“Maybe if I wouldn’t have sent him away this would have never happened…”

Nagisa woke up to the sound of Karma’s voice and rubbed his eyes. He then looked over to the redhead pacing the floor nervously. “Maybe so…” Nagisa sat up as Karma made his way over to him and embraced him in a hug.

“Nagisa!” he exclaimed. Nagisa returned the hug as Karma began to speak again. “I’m sorry...I shouldn’t have sent you away like that. I was scared for my own well being, but the whole time you were gone...I was scared for your well being…”

Nagisa sniffled as tears welled up in his eyes. “Karma...you said that you’d always be by my side and that you wouldn’t treat me like I didn’t matter! You lied to me!” Nagisa held his head down as several tears escaped his eyes.

“I did and I’m sorry; more sorry than you’ll ever know. But in our time apart, I was able to think about just how much you mean to me...I was planning on approaching you and talking to you about it, but I didn’t know when the right time to do it was,” Karma placed his index finger under Nagisa’s chin and his thumb on top of his chin as he lifted his face up, forcing Nagisa to look him in the eyes. A few strands of red fell into Karma’s face and Nagisa’s eyes widened in astonishment. He had forgotten just how well red danced with mercury. “Nagisa, I want you to know what real love is. It’s not when you pretend to be someone perfect only to be something worse...when you love someone, there’s no pretending.”

“I think I get what you mean…”

“Then, believe me when I say I love you, Nagisa.”

Nagisa scanned Karma’s face, looking for any hints of dishonesty, but he found none. He was honestly relieved to hear Karma say those words because that’s exactly how he felt as well.

“I love you too, Karma.”

Karma smirked before gently placing his lips on his, keeping his head just where he wanted it. Nagisa gave into the kiss and brought his hand up to cup Karma's cheek, securing his head. The kiss grew more passionate and heated, neither wanted to let go of the other. However, they were human and required air to breath so they pulled apart from each other, panting with only a thin string of saliva connecting the two. Nagisa's fingers entwined with Karma's as they tried to control their breathing. Karma lied on the bed, pulling Nagisa down with him. Nagisa nestled his head in the crook of Karma's neck, their fingers still entwined. 

"You fit so perfectly next to me~" Karma said as he placed a kiss on Nagisa's forehead. 

"You're so warm, Karma. I've been lacking your warmth for far too long," He positioned his head so that he was looking up at Karma. "You were long awaited…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is kinda long so you can skip it if you want-
> 
> While I was listening to this song while writing this, I saw a comment posted under the music video that basically said that in this song, the boy wasn't trying to save the girl with love or anything. He wasn't taking advantage of her situation just to make a move on her. He just wanted to be a good friend and listen to her and her problems from the kindness in his heart. I totally loved and agreed with this. It shouldn't be thought that the right man or woman can take a person's pain away with love. Sometimes all someone needs is a friend. With that being said, I noticed that in this story, or at least this chapter, I feel like I made Karma "save" Nagisa with love with the whole "Nagisa, I want you to know what real love is" line. He never meant to fall in love with Nagi, it just happened. His intentions were to just be there for him as a friend. 
> 
> Nonetheless, Hope you're enjoying this story~


	6. Uninvited Guests

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's slight smut in this chapter, but it's not heavily detailed.
> 
> Enjoy!~

Karma and Nagisa spent the rest of the day in each other's arms. Any phone calls or knocks at the door were ignored as they held each other so close that they adapted to each other’s breathing patterns. By night, they were totally in sync as Nagisa nestled his head into the crook of Karma’s neck.

“You know…” Karma started, “I love every second of this, but the guilt is eating away at me, Nagi. What have you been doing this past month...? Where did you go after I...” Karma trailed off, averting his gaze from Nagisa. 

“F-For starters...I did go back home, but without my mother there to pay the bills and rent, I had to go somewhere else…and don’t get mad, but I went to go visit my mother...a-and Akito…”

Karma listened to every word carefully; once Nagisa was done talking, he took his arm from behind Nagisa’s head and sat up. Nagisa looked at Karma quizzically and with a slight pout on his face, but he knew that Karma was doing his best to keep his composure.

“Where did you end up going…” he asked.

Nagisa’s heart stopped for a moment and he fiddled with his thumbs. He was reluctant to tell Karma where he had gone for the last two weeks of the month. Nagisa remembered it so vividly as well.

○○○

He was sitting right outside the door of his apartment with his legs hugged close to his body. He was lost, nowhere to go and no one to turn to. His only trustworthy friend sent him away into the world without him, now fearful of him. ‘I brought this on myself…’ he thought as he hung his head down. He tried not to think about the immense hunger he was feeling. He jumped, hearing footsteps ascend the staircase to his right, but he didn’t make an effort to get up and flee. ‘It’s just one of the neighbors’ he thought. It wasn’t until that same person stopped right next to him and spoke.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it, Nagisa~?” said a familiar voice.

Nagisa froze, his eyes wide with fear. He knew that voice all too well, how could he not? This happened to be a friend of Akito’s and his only one for that matter. As much as he’s claimed to hate ordinary humans, he’s grown attached to this one. It was probably due to his sadistic and manipulative behavior that he thought this particular human was different from the rest.

“What do you want, Itsuki?” Nagisa spat, clearly not in the mood for anything.

Itsuki leaned against the banister in front of Nagisa and looked at him. Pushing his short, brown hair back for no apparent reason, he started to speak.

“I might as well come clean~” he sighed before continuing, giving Nagisa a mischievous smirk. “I saw that your little red haired friend was pretty suspicious of someone following the two of you on your little walk home the other day~ Can you guess who that might’ve been~?”

Nagisa’s blood ran cold. “Y-You…” he stuttered. He internally smacked himself. When Karma told him that there was someone following them, he should’ve immediately suspected Itsuki. They were in the same class after all, and despite his tendency to not show up for class, he was there that day. He also knew how close of an eye Akito liked to keep on him. It made sense that he dragged his friend into this as well.

“Correct~ I’m terribly sorry that Akito interrupted your little get together, but I just had to inform him of your whereabouts~ and as you could probably tell, he wasn’t happy with who you were with~”

At the inference of Karma, Nagisa felt a slight pain in his heart. “Get to the point already, what do you want with me?”

"I've caught wind of what happened to your mother and Akito and I overheard your argument with your latest plaything~ I thought I might offer you a place to stay~"

"So you didn't stop following me after you ratted me out?!" he raised his voice slightly, rising from his spot. "Why the hell should I go with you?"

"Because a helpless little kitten like you shouldn't be left alone in the wild for too long~”

To Nagisa, that sounded like a threat; like Itsuki knew exactly what would happen to Nagisa if he was left alone. Nagisa himself knew what was bound to happen to him at this point, but he was so focused on how much he thought he screwed up with everyone in his life that it wasn’t until now that he even considered the amount of danger he was in.

Without another word, Nagisa descended down the flight of stairs, Itsuki following suit with a smirk on his face. He was afraid to stay with Itsuki, but he was more afraid of what might happen to him if he didn't. There wasn't really a difference between Akito and Itsuki and if there was then Nagisa wasn't aware of it. 

When they got to Itsuki's house, Nagisa took his shoes off at the door then started walking towards the guest room. Having been there countless times with Akito, he knew his way around the place pretty well. 

"Oh no you don't~" Itsuki said as he appeared behind Nagisa, snaking his arms around his waist and pulling him against his body. Itsuki lowered his head next to Nagisa's. "Let's stop by my room first~ I'm not letting you stay here rent free~" he whispered into Nagisa's ear before whisking him away to his bedroom.

○○○

"Nagisa?" Karma called out to him, breaking him from his thoughts. Nagisa had been silent this whole time and because of that, he had started to think the worst.

"I-I stayed at a friends house…" he lied. He knew that if he told Karma the truth that he'd demand to know where Itsuki lived so that he could go over there and handle him. Nagisa wasn't going to let them happen, not when he just got back on Karma's good side. 

Karma didn't seem to think anything of Nagisa's answer. He just smiled, realizing that it wasn't as bad as he thought it was. He cupped Nagisa's cheek in his hand and stroked it gently with his thumb. "You can stay here now~ That is…if you want to."

Nagisa smiled at that, but then his mind went blank. This was all moving so fast. Karma's declaration of love and then his?! They haven't even known each other for that long, yet Karma was able to depict what he was feeling and apparently Nagisa was able to too. 

"Can I think about it…?"

Karma frowned briefly, but it soon faded. "Of course~"

"Thanks," Nagisa said as he noticed how heavy his eyelids felt. Deciding to sleep, he closed his eyes and let sleep consume him. Karma watched as he fell asleep and he was surprised at how quickly he did. Considering all that he's been through, it's not surprising that he's that tired. He stared up at the ceiling, not feeling tired in the slightest. 

'Then, believe me when I say I love you, Nagisa.'

'I love you too, Karma.'

The words they had exchanged echoed in his mind. It wasn't until that very moment that he noticed how fast everything seemed to be moving. Even still, Karma didn't regret a thing. That feeling that he felt as they walked back to Asano's after seeing the new Sonic Ninja movie became evident to him after the month he spent without Nagisa; the way his heart ached every time he replayed the scene where he told Nagisa to go away and finally when he realized that he wanted to be with Nagisa, danger or no danger. He thought carefully as to what to do about their relationship in the future. Nothing was official, but Karma was determined to make it official. Following Nagisa, Karma closed his eyes and let sleep consume him easier than it ever had.

○○○

“Karma, hey! Wake up!” Nagisa yelled as he smacked Karma in the head with a pillow. Karma only groaned in response before turning in the other direction, falling deeper into slumber.

“Karma! You’re the one that told me to make sure I woke up early today and you’re not even awake!” he smacked him in the head with the pillow again, earning another groan out of the taller male. Karma peeled one of his eyes open and looked at Nagisa who smiled in victory. Eventually, he opened both eyes and sat up on the bed. Nagisa, who was already dressed and ready to go, stood in the doorway. 

“Since you’re up, I’ll wait in the living room,” he said before leaving the room. Karma immediately got up and prepared himself after remembering what he planned to do with the bluenette. He had planned for them to get to know each other better by taking him around and hanging out with him all day. After he finished getting dressed, he left his room and joined Nagisa in the living room.

“Ready to go?” Karma asked him.

“Yep!”

With that, they both left the room and put on their shoes to leave the apartment entirely. They walked down the hall and stopped in front of the elevator. Nagisa stepped in and leaned against the wall of the elevator as Karma did the button pushing. It wasn’t long before they left the apartment building and started walking down the street.

“So, where are we going?”

“A new café just opened up a few blocks away and I thought it would be nice to take you there~ You’re welcome to oppose~”

“N-No, that actually sounds nice.”

Karma smiled and led Nagisa in the direction of the café. No words were exchanged for the rest of the walk, they enjoyed the comfortable silence between them. 

They entered the café and sat down at a rather small booth. A woman came by their table with two menus and handed them to the two males. They opened them and browsed for something to eat. It wasn't long before the woman came back and took their orders. 

"I'll have the strawberry cake."

"And I'll have the blueberry shake."

She wrote their orders down on her notepad and left. Karma leaned forward a bit and looked at Nagisa. 

"I hate to bring this up, but I made it my goal to get to know you better, so…I wanna know how it went with your mom and Akito when you went to go visit them…and about how your mom's always been," he spoke softly. 

Karma was aware that Nagisa might not be up for talking about it, but he felt as though Nagisa needed to talk about it. Just like how he had confided in Karma after the movie, Nagisa needed someone to vent to. 

"It went…worse than expected," he started. "I asked her if she regretted trying to kill me…a-and she said no…then I told her that I never want to see her again, that she was unworthy of being my mother…" 

Karma listened intently to every single word. It made him sick to hear that his own mother treated him that way. For a moment he thought about his parents and wondered how they would've raised him if they weren't too busy traveling the world. 

"And as for how she's treated me before…i-it was nothing but abuse…I don't care to go into detail…" 

Just then, the woman came back with their orders and set them in front of them. Karma took a bite of his cake. 

"What about your visit with Akito…?" Karma asked hesitantly. 

Nagisa sipped at his shake quietly, carefully thinking of a reply. 

"Good…" he lied. 

Karma didn’t press him any further. Instead, he finished his slice of strawberry cake, stealing subtle glances at the bluenette. Nagisa just happened to look up to find Karma staring at him with those warm, mercury orbs, eyes half lidded. Karma closed his eyes and shot him a toothy smile, causing him to blush. After they were done with their snacks, they paid for them and left. 

As they walked down the street, Karma put his hands behind his head, looking around at the scenery. 

“It’s so quiet…” Nagisa mused, looking around. All that could be heard were the faint bird chirps in the distance. He sighed contently then focused his vision ahead. He froze, seeing a figure walk towards them. Upon seeing said figure, he immediately knew who it was. How could he not? By this point, he knew that figure better than he should and he loathed it. As the figure inched closer, he grew stiff. Karma noticed and sent a glance his way, but he didn’t return it. Instead, his eyes were trained on the figure. Karma noticed this as well and glazed at the figure just as they passed each other. Itsuki kept his attention trained forward as he passed them, a knowing smirk growing on his face afterwards.

Karma shrugged off Nagisa's weird behavior and kept walking. As they kept walking, he noticed that Nagisa became more loose and lively, which made his worries melt away entirely.

○○○

“I’m beat,” Karma said as they entered his apartment.

“Same here….” Nagisa said as they both took their shoes off. “But I had fun.”

“I’m glad!~” Karma cooed, chuckling lightly.

“Hey, Karma…? Nagisa called out to him as they advanced further into his apartment.

“Yeah, Nagi?”

“I’ve been thinking about your offer and...I’ve decided to stay here with you! I-If that’s still okay with you…”

Suddenly Karma was in front of Nagisa and being the flustered mess he was, backed into the wall behind him. 

“It’s perfectly fine with me~” he cooed. “And another thing~ Would you do me the pleasure of being my boyfriend~?”

Nagisa froze, his heart pounding. “Y-Yes, I’d like that,” he answered instinctively.

Nagisa looked up into Karma’s mercury eyes and smiled as a few strands of his crimson hair fell onto his face, placing his hand flat on Karma’s chest. He didn’t push Karma away so Karma made no effort to move. He gazed into Nagisa’s azure eyes as his lips parted.

“You’re beautiful…” Nagisa whispered, absentmindedly placing his other hand on Karma’s cheek. Karma brought his left hand up to touch the hand placed on his cheek as he inched closer to the bluenette. Instead of kissing him like Nagisa thought he was going to do, he gently rubbed his nose against Nagisa’s, a smirk playing on his face; Nagisa couldn’t help but pout.

“No you~” Karma whispered before Nagisa gently pressed his lips against Karma’s, closing the distance between them. Karma melted into the kiss as Nagisa’s hands found their way to Karma’s hair. Before things got too heated, Karma broke the kiss, much to Nagisa’s dismay, only to pick up the bluenette and carry him to his bedroom. 

Karma set him down, only for their lips to meet again. Nagisa pulled Karma down on top of him, their lips never leaving one another's. Nagisa’s hands traveled to the hem of Karma’s shirt as Karma greedily licked and bit at Nagisa’s bottom lip. As soon as Nagisa pulled the shirt over Karma’s head, Karma pulled the shirt over his head and their lips immediately smashed together again. Answering Karma’s obvious plea, Nagisa parted his lips slightly, allowing Karma’s tongue entrance. His tongue explored every inch of his mouth and Nagisa moaned softly. As they continued, Karma grew harder. Nagisa felt this and grew hard himself. Nagisa had been in positions like this before, but this time it was different. This time, he felt comfortable and he believed that he genuinely loved this person and that this person genuinely loved him back. He believed that he wasn’t being used like all the other times, and unlike all the other times, he initiated this. At some point, both of their pants came off along with their underwear. They broke the kiss, the thin string of saliva connecting the two broke as Karma sat up.

“I’ll be gentle~”

“Nagisa smirked. “You don’t have to be~”

○○○

Their breathing was quiet and calm as they slept in each other's arms, evidence of their activity still evident on their bodies. They held each other tightly as if they feared that some unknown entity would pull them apart.

Meanwhile, two unwelcome guests made their way into Karma’s apartment; one of them took a detour into Karma’s kitchen and picked up an expensive looking glass vase. They then quietly made their way to Karma’s bedroom. They twisted the knob and pushed on the door, opening it slowly. Once they got the door open all the way, they made their way to the foot of the king sized bed that resided in the middle of the room. Once they got there, that was their cue for Hiromi to take the glass vase that she took and smash it onto the ground. Both Nagisa and Karma’s eyes flew open, but they were still pretty out of it nonetheless. Karma attempted to rub the sleep out of his eyes as Nagisa sat up, his gaze drifting down to the foot of the bed. He gasped and attempted to scoot back farther onto the bed, but he was unable to do so. Karma’s gaze then immediately trailed to the foot of the bed and his eyes widened before glaring menacingly at the two intruders. They both had wicked smiles stretching across their faces.

“M-Mother…” Nagisa whispered fearfully.

“Akito…” Karma growled.


	7. The Source Of Our Pain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if Nagisa seems oversexualized/slutty, that wasn't my intent. ^^

Karma calmly reached over to his nightstand and opened the drawer, pulling out a gun. Nagisa watched everything unfold fearfully, feeling like he had the inability to breathe. Karma pointed the pistol at them, but they weren’t fazed. 

“Nagisa, darling, I’m disappointed in you. Honestly, why are you with him? Disgusting...I don’t even want to imagine what you did with him,” Hiromi spat.

“He’ll fuck anyone, Hiromi,” said Akito while staring at Nagisa with a blank face. No matter how much Nagisa tried, he couldn’t read him. He was more focused on the immense fear he felt at the moment. Two of the most dangerous people in his life were standing right before him; his guard was completely down. How had they gotten out of jail? For what they’ve done, they should’ve gone to prison for the rest of their lives. “And he oughta know better, he knows that the only one that’s good for him is me…” Akito continued.

“Say another word about Nagisa and I’ll kill you where you stand…” Karma said violently.

At this point, warm, hot tears were streaming down Nagisa’s face. The sun started to rise, it’s warm rays spilling into the room. 

“Oh, but I speak the truth~” Akito said with a smirk. “Say Nagisa~ How good was Itsuki~? Better or worse than me~? Speaking of Itsuki, he says he misses hearing the noises you’d make~”

At this, Karma fired the gun between them, hitting the wall behind them purposefully as if to scare them.

“What the hell are you talking about?!” Karma demands. Nagisa flinched at the tone of his voice; he could feel the bile in his throat. This whole situation was making him sick.

“Oh? What’s this~? You didn’t tell your new toy about your time with Itsuki~? Not surprising I guess~”

Karma aimed the pistol at Akito’s right shoulder and fired the gun. Akito quickly stepped to the left, avoiding the bullet. This shocked Karma to say the least, but he didn't lower the gun.

“Come on Hiromi, I guess we aren’t welcome here anymore,” Akito says as he starts to leave the room. He stops at the door, making eye contact with Nagisa. “Don’t forget the collar I have around your neck and the leash I attached to it. You can’t escape me and in the end, you’ll always be mine~” 

With that being said, they leave. Once Nagisa is sure they left the apartment, he breaks down, hugging his knees to his bare chest and crying quietly though Karma can hear his pain. He’s seething with anger, but he doesn’t want to hurt Nagisa more than he already has been. Instead, he wraps his arms around his tiny body in an effort to comfort him and waits for him to stop crying.

○○○

“Gakushu, pleaseeee?” Aki whined as she tugged on Asano’s arm. He was sitting at his desk studying until she walked into his room all of a sudden. He still tried to study, but to no avail. He was torn between complying with her request and studying. He wanted to pay attention to her and give her everything she wanted, but what she was asking him was something he really didn’t want to do.

“But I really would rather avoid Akabane…”

“But I want to check up on him, it’s been a while since I’ve seen him...and I want you to be there when I tell him that we’re together now!”

Asano blushed at her statement, causing her to giggle. The month she spent with Asano and away from Karma allowed feelings to surface that the pair never realized were there. After they had just finished watching a rather boring movie one night, Asano found himself confessing to her. He didn’t feel like he could hide it anymore and the thought of someone else claiming her heart irritated him. Their close proximity didn’t help either; it made Asano nervous, but he soon noticed how nervous Aki seemed as well, pushing him to believe that it was possible she felt the same way. He sighed as he closed his textbook.

“Fine,” he simply stated. “Who knows, his reaction might amuse me.”

He stood up, coming face to face with her. He quickly pecked her lips before walking past her to leave the room. A blush rose to her brown, caramel cheeks; it wasn’t visible, but it was still clearly evident that she was blushing. She turned to leave the room, the blush slowly leaving her face.

After they made their way downstairs and put their shoes on, they left the house and walked down the street hand in hand.

○○○

A knock sounded at the door which Karma immediately heard. He got up from his spot on his bed and left his room. At this point, Karma and Nagisa were fully dressed, but Nagisa hadn’t been so willing to talk to Karma just yet. He was still shaken up by his mother and Akito’s sudden visit and Karma didn’t make an effort to pry too much just yet. He stopped at the door and opened it. He didn’t get a chance to see who it was because they immediately embraced him in a hug.

“Karma!” Aki exclaimed. As soon as he heard her voice, he smiled slightly, returning the hug.

They pulled apart and it was at that moment that Karma realized who else was at the door. He couldn’t help but glare at him. Since when did Asano ever come over to his apartment?

“Was it necessary for you to come along, first place?” 

Aki pouted then stepped back so that she was standing next to Asano again, taking his hand in hers and entwining their fingers. This took Karma back a bit. Sure Aki and Asano were best friends, but they never held hands like that; not to his knowledge at least. He raised an eyebrow then looked at the pair. 

“Don’t be so mean to my boyfriend…” she said, a pout still playing on her face. His eyes darted to Asano who had a smirk on his.

“She asked me to come along, Akabane~” 

“Whatever…” Karma sighed. Aki looked at him and frowned; she knew something was bothering him.

“What’s wrong, Karms?”

Karma stepped aside to let the pair into his apartment. He feared that there could be an ear or two listening in on them.

“Akito and Nagisa’s mother got out of jail and broke in here last night...and Nagisa’s here. Their sudden appearance really shook him up and he won’t talk to me,” Karma almost growled.

Aki grew tense at the mention of Akito, but she tried to shake it off. Her hand fell limp in Asano’s, causing him to look at her worriedly. “Weren’t you guys fighting already?” she inquired.

“Yeah, but he ran into trouble on the way...home...from school yesterday so I helped him. We made up after that,” he simply explained.

“Can I see him…?”

With a small nod, Karma led them to his room. Once they were inside, Aki’s eyes immediately landed on Nagisa, causing her to tear up. Without thinking, she let go of Asano’s hand and went to sit beside him. When she sat next to him, they made eye contact and instinctively started crying, warm, hot tears streaming down their faces. Karma and Asano stood awkwardly in the doorway, watching them. They felt bad that there was seemingly nothing they could really do for the two. A few minutes passed and their crying was reduced to little hiccups and whimpers. Aki sighed, her eyes red and puffy and her cheeks tear stained.

“I-I can’t hide this anymore...I can’t stand this!” 

“Aki-” Nagisa started.

“No!” she cut him off. “I want them to know...I need them to know…” she turned to Karma and Asano, meeting their gazes. “I never told you guys about Akito...not in the ways that I should’ve. I-I was afraid...because he told me that if I told anyone about him then he’d have no choice but to kill me…” Karma and Asano’s fist were balled at their sides.

“Karma, I told you that Akito’s full name was Akito Fuji, but it’s not...it’s Akito Sohma…” she continued, her gaze now directed at the concrete floor below. “Karma, I’m sorry I lied to you and Asano, I’m sorry I never told you…” they listened to each word intently, the two boys in the dark knowing this went farther than his name. “He’s a part of the Sohma family and within this family are various people possessed by the spirits of the animals from the chinese zodiac. Akito’s considered the God of the zodiacs...h-he goes around abusing the rest of the family...mentally and physically...mostly the ones possessed by the zodiac spirits.”

Nagisa notices the weird stares she’s getting from the other two and speaks up. “She’s telling the truth...I myself am one of the zodiacs...the snake to be exact”

“My point for saying all of this is...Akito needs to be taken down, s-somehow. His whole family and whoever comes into his lives suffers...me...Nagisa...this needs to stop”

“Wait…” Karma said, thinking over what had been said in his head. “Nagisa, that means you’re a part of their family too, right…? If you’re one of the zodiacs...but why don’t you have the same last name as them?”

“Well...me and my mother are a part of the Sohma family, but my father isn’t. When they got married, my mother decided to take his last name. Akito tried to prevent their marriage, but being the crazed lunatic she is, even Akito couldn’t stop her. She’s the only one he can’t control, but he doesn’t need to when they’re basically on the same page all the time. He’ll never admit it...but he fears my mother...”

“This whole thing is ridiculous,” Asano chimed in. “Unless there’s some way you can prove what you’re saying is true about this family then I refuse to put another thought into the matter.”

Aki stared at him, heartbroken that he would doubt her especially when she sat there and cried because of all of this. Aki looked away from him then made eye contact with Nagisa. He knew what she was thinking and being fine with it, he nodded. She then embraced Nagisa in a hug which he tried to return, but he didn’t get the chance to as a blue cloud of smoke appeared around them. As soon as it disappeared, Nagisa was gone from his place on the bed and there lied a blue snake in Aki’s arms. Both Karma and Asano looked too shocked to say anything. What had just happened?

“Whenever someone of the opposite sex hugs a member of the zodiacs, they turn into their animal, I was never allowed to hug Asano and I found that weird...It’s when I snuck up on him and hugged him one day that he snapped and I found out everything…” Aki explains as Nagisa slithers up her arm. “And as for stopping Akito...we could use Nagisa~” she suggests innocently as she picks Nagisa up off her arm and tucks him under the covers. “I’ve heard that the snake is supposed to be venomous; he could sneak into Akito’s room one night while he’s asleep and bite him.”

Nagisa turned back to normal and peeked his head from under the covers. “W-Whoa! That might not work!”

“Whatever happens, I want to help,” Asano butts in, putting a hand on Aki’s shoulder, having gotten closer to her as the conversation progressed. Nagisa smiled, but it didn’t last long. 

“We can take a shot at doing this as long as everyone knows the risk...but for now I need to rest…” he sighed before lying his head on the pillow. Aki got up and planted a kiss on his forehead before leaving the room, the other boys following suit.

○○○

Karma walked back into his room after Aki and Asano left. Nagisa heard the sound of footsteps approaching him and turned around to face Karma.

“You’re up,” Karma said as he sat next to Nagisa.

“Yeah, I took a small nap...are Aki and Asano gone?” Karma nodded.

“Look, I’m sorry for not talking to you about any of this...but I’m glad Aki spoke up…” he admitted. “It’s not as easy as you may think to talk about this...you can thank Akito for that…”

Karma shook his head then looked at Nagisa with soft eyes. “You don’t have to feel obligated to tell me anything...but about this Itsuki person…” 

Nagisa sat up, putting a hand on Karma’s shoulder. “He approached me outside of my apartment and offered me a place to stay...I went with him because he was right when he said I wasn’t safe outside. A-And I didn’t have anywhere else to go. And of course he wanted me to pay with my body…" Nagisa shuddered, shaking away the resurfacing memories. Karma looked unfazed, but on the inside he was anything but calm. 

Just then, his phone buzzed. Nagisa picked it up and read what was displayed on the screen. 

Itsuki: _'I hope you're coming back tonight~ I even highly suggest it~'_

Karma peered over and read what was displayed on his phone as well. Nagisa made no effort to hide it. 

That was it. That was all Karma could take. He took the phone out of Nagisa's hands and started typing out a reply. Nagisa watched until Karma finished and set it on the bed after pressing send. Karma got up and left the room without another word spoken to Nagisa. Curious, Nagisa picked up the phone to see what Karma had typed. What he saw made his heart flutter. 

Nagisa: _'Oh, he's not coming back~ Come near us and I'll personally see to it that your buried six feet under~_

_~Karma'_

○○○

Back at the Sohma estate, Akito made his way to his room inside the main house. It had been an exceptionally long time since he’d been there so he wasn’t surprised at the amount of stares he seemed to get from the other family members. Their gazes didn’t linger for long though in fear of Akito. Once Akito was back inside his room, he slid the door closed and got dressed in his old robes.

“I know you're there,” Akito said as he sat down. Just then, a silhouette emerged from what seemed to be the darkest corner of the room. It made its way over to Akito. Once it was in front of Akito, he motioned for it to sit in front of him. 

“Thanks for getting us out of there. You really are a loyal dog, Shigure~” he cooed as he pulled Shugure’s head onto his lap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't planning for Akito to be Akito Sohma, but I thought I could make something interesting out of it xD (If you don't know who that is, go watch Fruits Basket. It's good, but Akito's a bi-) 
> 
> Akito was inspired by Akito Sohma all along though and I gave him his name because why not?
> 
> (Spoiler in the next line if you haven't seen it) 
> 
> I know Ayame's the snake zodiac, but I made it Nagisa for the sake of this fic.


	8. His Lingering Presence

Karma peeled an eye open to look over Nagisa's petite form. He noted how his upper body rose and fell with every breath he took. He looked so peaceful next to him, but somehow Karma knew better.

“Nagisa...why aren’t you sleeping?”

“I’ve been found out, huh?” Nagisa mused out loud softly, turning his body to face Karma. He giggled at the sight of Karma’s messy bed head. His red locks sprawled out on his pillow with a few strands threatening to block his vision. Nagisa stared into his mercury orbs, almost forgetting the question Karma asked him. “Honestly...I’m afraid…”

Karma reached out and placed his hand on Nagisa’s cold, pale cheek and stroked it with his thumb. The darkness surrounding them prevented Karma from seeing the blush that dusted his cheeks.

“I won’t let anything happen to you…” he whispered sternly yet softly, still caressing his cheek as if to sooth the petite boy. In return, Nagisa gently lifted Karma’s hand off his cheek and brought it closer to his lips, planting a kiss in the palm of his hand.

“I know…” he whispered back, his voice a bit quieter than Karma’s, “But even still...I can’t shake the feeling that I’m in danger…”

Karma furrowed his brows, snaking his arms around Nagisa’s small waist and pulling him closer. Nagisa tensed up at first, but melted into Karma’s hold as he hugged him close to his chest. Karma’s fresh, strawberry scent infiltrated his nostrils, making him feel more comfortable than he did moments ago. His strong, muscular arms kept a soft yet gentle hold around Nagisa, making him feel protected. Nagisa couldn’t help but nuzzle into Karma’s chest, his eyes growing heavy. Karma let out a yawn above him, hugging him closer.

“I’ll put up a thousand barriers that the danger will have to get through before I let it put it’s hand on you...now sleep~” 

With a nod, Nagisa closed his eyes, finding it easier for sleep to consume him in Karma’s hold; the warmth radiating off his body. Soon after, Karma fell asleep, entangling his legs with Nagisa’s.

○○○

Karma woke up before Nagisa did and with that came the task of getting untangled from him without waking him. Fortunately, he managed, but not without running into a little trouble. His heart melted at how Nagisa would unconsciously cling to his pajama shirt everytime he moved, or when he would mumble his name, scrunching his nose slightly. It tugged at his heartstrings, but he promised Nagisa that he would protect him. Placing a delicate kiss on Nagisa’s forehead, he left his room and his apartment entirely, making sure that every window and door was locked.

He walked down the street and headed for the train station. He fished his phone out of his pocket and punched in a few numbers before putting it up to his ear, scanning the area around him. 

“Hey Karma! What’s up?” Aki’s cheery voice sounded through the phone.

“Meet me at the train station in 30 minutes. I want your help in picking out something for Nagisa.”

“Aww, how sweet~ Big Bad Karma picking out something for his boyfriend~” she cooed on the other end. Karma could’ve sworn he heard Asano chuckling in the background, causing a blush to rise to his cheeks.

“Shut it...are you coming or not?!”

“I’ll be there~”

“Great. And don’t bring-” she hung up before he could finish, “Asano…” he sighed.

Putting his phone back into his pocket, he continued his walk to the train station. His thoughts drifted to Nagisa’s sleeping form on his bed. He hoped that he wouldn’t wake up mad that he left him there alone. Shaking those thoughts away, he stopped, arriving at the train station. He sent a quick text to Aki, letting her know where he was then put his phone back into his pocket. The cold breeze brushed past him, but he refused to shiver. 

“The train will be here in ten minutes, where the hell-” he muttered as he turned to his right, answering his own unfinished question. Asano walked towards Karma, carrying Aki on his back; she was preoccupied with trying to put Asano’s short hair into pigtails. Asano stopped in front of Karma and bent down a bit, allowing Aki to jump down from his back, her curly, purple fro bouncing as she did so.

“Thanks for the ride!” Aki giggled, admiring the tiny pigtails that she managed to put into his hair before turning to Karma. “Now then, what’s this you’re getting for Nagi~?”

“A dog. After the break in, he doesn’t feel safe...so I thought a dog might make him feel a bit more secure.”

She nodded silently. A dog, huh? Karma had always wanted one when he was little, but his parents wouldn’t allow it. As he got older, he started to care less about getting a dog and didn’t think about it as much. It’s too bad that he’s getting one under these circumstances and not because he genuinely wanted to just to have a furry companion. This dog would have to be vicious enough to protect them from harm. Although, that kind of dog seems right up Karma’s alley. She glanced over at Karma, a smirk playing on his face.

○○○

"That one! No, that one!" Aki shouted excitedly, looking around at the dogs that surrounded them. Karma picked up the golden retriever that she set her eye on, letting it rest in his left arm while he stroked it's head with his right hand.

"This one's cute and all, but it's just a puppy,” he said as he placed the dog back down on the floor with the rest. Karma glanced over at Asano who had claimed a seat and sat down the minute they stepped into the pet shop. “How’s it going over there, first place~?”

“Lovely. Just pick a suitable dog and we’ll be on our way,” he deadpanned. Asano looked over at Aki who was still gushing over every dog she saw. His lips curled up into a smile with every little happy bark that came from a dog that she had pet. Asano wasn’t much of a dog person, but he was tempted to gift Aki with one just to keep that smile on her face. 

“Hey dork, over here,” Karma called out to Aki, waving her over to where he was standing.

“Did you decide on one?” she asked as she walked over to where he was standing.

“I sure did~” he crouched down in front of a steel cage that couldn’t be seen into. Aki looked inside, but couldn’t make out what dog was engulfed in the darkness.

“What dog- AHH!” she screamed, backing away into Karma’s figure as a rather large pit bull came stalking out of the shadows and into the light, barking viciously. 

“A pit bull~” he cooed, wrapping his arms around her protectively. At the sight of this, Asano stood up and approached them, glaring at Karma who only smirked back. He looked at Aki’s trembling form and his eyes softened.

“That dog’s more than sure to do the trick,” he said, reaching for Aki’s hand. His cold digits touched her warm, delicate ones and in a matter of minutes, she was in Asano’s arms, giving him a squeeze as if reassuring him that she’s fine. She pulled away from him then looked back down at the steel cage.

“He’ll definitely do the trick,” she assured, her usual carefree smile returning to her face. “Although, I wonder if Akito would even be fazed by it...he handles Shigure pretty well…” she muttered quietly, her smile falling. Asano noticed her change in behavior and he heard her soft voice as she muttered quietly under her breath. He was pretty sure that he heard her say someone’s name; Shugure, was it? As curious as he was, he decided not to bring it up at the moment, returning his attention to Karma who was purchasing the pit bull. After the money was exchanged, one of the workers unlocked the steel cage, but the dog was hesitant to emerge from it, unsure of what was happening. 

"C'mere boy~" Karma cooed, motioning for the dog to come to him. It sauntered out of the shadows, its short, golden fur glowing in the light. Karma took note of it’s white stomach and short, pointy, folded ears.

“It’s a Golden Retriever Pitbull mix,” the worker chimed in. He was fairly short with short, black hair, a round nose and a red hat. Karma read the name on his nametag then looked up at him.

“Good to know, Norita,” he said before crouching down in front of the dog. He held his hand out and watched as the dog sniffed the backside of his hand, his small, black nose barely grazed Karma’s hand, but even still it felt cold and wet.

“Eh, Yuji’s fine. Anyways, that’s about all I can tell you about him,” he admitted, scratching the back of his neck.

“That’s fine. Come on, you two,” Karma said to the couple behind him as he left the store with his new dog walking at his side. The dog turned out to be very obedient; Karma assumed that the dog was well trained by whoever owned him last. That was one thing he didn’t have to do that’s for sure.

Asano and Aki caught up to Karma, Asano on his left along with the dog and Aki on his right. The dog turned its head towards Asano and started barking, making the trio stop. Karma smirked.

“Looks like somebody doesn’t like you, first place~ That makes two of us~” he pet the dog’s head lovingly, causing it to stop barking as it gently nuzzled Karma’s hand. 

“He reminds me of you,” Aki giggled, referring to the dog. “Maybe that’s why it seemed to have no problem with you right off the bat.”

“Hm, you might be right about that,” Karma said gazing at the dog.

○○○

Karma opened the door to his apartment slowly, peeking his head in. It was quiet so he automatically assumed that Nagisa was still asleep; at least, that’s what he was hoping. He walked in with the dog following behind him, wandering into the living room. He froze in the doorway, spotting Nagisa sitting on the couch with a pout on his face.

“H-Hey Nagisa…” he tried, smiling sheepishly, hoping the dog couldn't be seen by him and that it would stay quiet until he was ready to show it to him.

“Hey Karma...where’ve you been…” he inquired in a low tone.

Karma chuckled, motioning for the dog to come out from behind him. It trotted out from behind him, causing Nagisa to finally turn his head and look in their direction, the dog’s soft paws pelted the floor. Nagisa’s eyes widened and he jumped up from his spot on the couch and ran to the back of the room and into the corner. The dog continued to trot over to him, stopping at a fair distance in front of him, letting out a low growl. A bead of sweat rolled down Nagisa’s face as he contemplated what to do. He looked over at Karma who looked ready to jump in, but he feared that he’d cause the dog to advance towards Nagisa more, potentially causing harm to the small boy. He sighed looking at the dog.

‘This is ridiculous...backed into a corner by a dog…’ he thought. He was bigger than the dog and he really didn’t feel like spending the rest of his day in the corner. Something came over Nagisa, causing him to glare at the dog. The dog started to back away, whimpering with its tail in between its legs. 

“Way to establish dominance, Nagi~” Karma said as the dog backed up into his legs. He kneeled down to stroke the dogs head, calming it slightly. 

“I-I didn’t mean to scare it…” he said, walking over to them and falling to his knees. “Why did you bring home a dog?” he inquired as he lifted his hand in front of the dog, allowing it to sniff it; he shivered at the cold wetness of the dog's nose.

“I got it for you. Since you’ve been feeling scared lately, I thought it would make you feel a bit more secure.”

“Thanks Karma,” Nagisa smiled, blushing slightly. Karma was worried about him and it showed. The dog lifted its paw and rested it on Nagisa’s thigh, lowering its head. Nagisa took that as an invitation to gently stroke the dog's head and it wagged its tail in response. A smile tugged at Nagisa’s lips seeing the dog become more comfortable with him in that short amount of time. The dog feared Nagisa, yes but because of that, it chose not to cross him, coming off as tame. 

In a matter of minutes, the dog was cuddled up against Nagisa; its short, golden fur tickling his hand. Nagisa giggled, lifting the dog off his lap and standing up.

“Does he have a name?” Nagisa asked as he started walking towards Karma’s room with the dog following behind him.

“Not yet,” he admitted, following Nagisa and the dog. “I thought you’d maybe wanna name him.”

Nagisa crawled into bed and once he was situated under the covers, the dog jumped up there with him and reclaimed its spot on Nagisa’s lap; he smiled down at the dog. Karma climbed in bed next to Nagisa, narrowing his gaze at the dog. He thought the dog would do more protecting than cuddling up to his boyfriend. Nagisa never had a pet before so he was unsure of what to name it. He thought carefully as to what it could be. It wasn’t ideal for the dog to go too long without a name.

After a while, Nagisa spoke up. “How about Kota?” he asked, stroking the dog’s head. “It means happiness and good fortune.”

“Is that so~? I like it~” Karma cooed, leaning over towards Nagisa, pressing a chaste kiss to his lips.

Nagisa smiled. “Kota it is.”

○○○

It's been three weeks since Karma got Nagisa that dog and Karma swears that every single day, not once did Kota leave Nagisa’s side. It irritated him to say the least. Everytime he leaned in for a kiss, Kota was there. Everytime he was in the mood to cuddle, Kota was there. The other day, Karma pulled Nagisa into the bathroom and started a heated kissing session. Hands wandered to forbidden places, clothes were stripped off, and the pair ended up in the shower, doing more kissing then washing up. Kota had been outside the door the entire time. When they emerged from the bathroom, they found Kota lingering by the door and once he saw Nagisa, he immediately took his side.

This baffled Karma; Kota went from fearing Nagisa to loving him endlessly, clinging to his side every minute of the day. Karma’s pout didn’t go unnoticed. Nagisa looked down at Kota who was currently lying on his lap and chuckled. Karma’s jealousy was adorable and different from Akito’s jealousy. Akito would resort to killing the cause of his jealousy. Karma, on the other hand, just sat close by, a small pout playing on his face. 

Nagisa thought for a moment; Kota was a pretty obedient dog, right? It wouldn’t hurt to let him roam outside for a bit to stretch his legs. 

“Come on, Kota,” Nagisa rubbed his back and watched as he jumped off his lap. He stood up and left Karma’s apartment without another word, Kota walking right alongside him. They walked down the hallway and rode the elevator down to the first floor. They proceeded to leave the apartment complex and step out onto the bright green grass covered in fresh morning dew. Kota had his long, pink tongue hanging halfway out of his mouth and it appeared as if he were smiling.

“Go on, Kota. I’ll come back for you in a little while,” Nagisa assured, motioning for Kota to walk freely on his own. Kota was hesitant to leave Nagisa’s side, but after a while of looking at the vast land in front of him, he trotted off. Nagisa smiled and headed back inside.

When Nagisa walked back into the living room without Kota to Karma’s surprise; his pout was long gone. Noticing this, Nagisa smiled, grabbing Karma by his waist and lying him down on the couch, lying on top of him afterwards. Karma rested his chin on top of Nagisa’s head as Nagisa hugged him, nuzzling his head into Karma’s chest.

“Where’s Kota?” Karma inquired.

“He’s outside,” Nagisa answered softly, his voice barely above a whisper. “He’s a pretty obedient dog who can take care of himself so I thought it would be fine,” he explains. 

Karma smiled, wrapping his arms around Nagisa’s petite frame. The soft murmurs coming from the television slowly lulling him to sleep.

○○○

Karma’s soft snores sounded beneath Nagisa who was wide awake. He observed how dark the room had gotten and thought back to Kota. He had let the time slip away from him and he cursed himself for letting it happen. Strategically maneuvering himself off of Karma without waking him, he left the apartment.

Nagisa walked outside, the warmth engulfed him, yet a shiver ran down his spine. He looked around at the grey streets and the dark green grass under the midnight sky, with one star twinkling brighter than the rest.

“Kota!” Nagisa called out into the darkness, expecting Kota’s figure to come running out of the shadows and into his arms. Not a sound was made; his soft paws and sharp nails weren’t heard colliding with the asphalt.

“Kota!!” Nagisa called out again in a concerned tone, baffled that he hadn’t shown himself yet. A minute passed and yet there still wasn’t a sign of Kota. Afraid to wander too far into the darkness by himself, he ran back inside to get Karma.

He tapped his food impatiently in the elevator until it finally decided to open its doors. When it did, Nagisa bolted to Karma’s door. He reached his hand out to grab the knob when he looked up. A note had been taped to Karma’s door and when he skimmed over it, he could’ve sworn he saw his name so he read it thoroughly.

It read: _‘You’ve got yourself such a lovely dog, Nagisa~ Hope you don’t mind that I borrowed it~_

_Oh, and how’s your dad~?_

_~Akito S.’_

Nagisa’s heart dropped, ripping the note from the door, he turned the cold knob and ran inside. He ran into the living room and fell to his knees next to the couch where Karma’s sleeping form still resided. Nagisa forced himself to shake Karma awake, trembling.

“K-Karma, please!” he pleaded. Karma jolted awake and turned to face Nagisa. He looked into his tearful eyes and instantly assumed the worst.

“What’s wrong?!” 

Unable to speak clearly, Nagisa handed him the note.


	9. The Ordeal of Bringing Down His "God"

Gakushu and Aki walked to school together hand in hand. It was peaceful and nice considering there wasn't a single person around to both of their surprises. Maybe everyone else rose early or slept in or took another route all together. Aki found it unusual that Gakushu was fine walking to school with her instead of giving her a ride like he sometimes did in his limousine. Although, they were dating and have been for a little while now; maybe Asano just wanted to spend time with her without the company of his chauffeur. 

"Hey Aki?" Asano asked in a soft tone, making her turn to him. "Are you happy with me?"

She blinked, taken aback by his question. 

"Huh? Of course I'm happy with you, Shu. Why do you ask?" 

He pressed his lips into a thin line, tightening his hold on her hand. 

"Because, I'm me. I mean, I'm not the ideal boyfriend. I'm often busy with Student Council work or studying and I lack the skill of showing proper affection...I'm still learning." 

She chuckled, stopping in her tracks which caused Asano to stop as well. 

"Don't fret so much, love. You may not be an ideal boyfriend, but you've been an amazing boyfriend so far...except for that time when you didn't believe me about the zodiacs," she pouted at the memory. "At least you're trying," she finishes, looking into his usually intimating violet eyes. 

Asano smiled at her and she pulled him into a hug which he happily returned. Unbeknownst to them, the big five were approaching them. They pulled apart and the big five took that as their opportunity to call Asano over and invite him to walk with them. They had never seen Asano of all people walking to school and seeing him with a girl was shocking. And she wasn't just any girl, she was the girl that was usually seen hanging around Karma the so called delinquent. They'd be lying if they said they weren't concerned. 

Gakushu narrowed his gaze at them, but then stopped himself. He found it insensitive that they were asking him such a thing when he was with his girlfriend, but he hadn't actually told them about her. It wasn't any of their business. 

"I'll have to decline. I'm walking with my girlfriend today," he simply stated. 

"You should go walk with them, I'll be fine," she says, softly poking his arm, not wanting to keep him from hanging out with his usual group. 

He shoots her a quizzical look, but decides not to question her. He leaned down and pecked her cheek before walking off with the big five and their burning questions. 

When she could no longer see them, Aki continued walking to school, taking in the scenery around her. Since she decided to wear her hair down today, her ash maybe tresses danced in the breeze that occasionally brushed past her. 

She felt her phone start to vibrate in her pocket so she grabbed it and answered the call. 

"Hey Karms, what's up?"

There was a brief silence before Karma decided to answer. 

"Nagi and I aren't coming to school today so could you get our work for us?" 

"Again? What's going on with you two?" she asked him worriedly. 

"Don't freak out…but," she heard him sigh dejectedly on the other end before continuing. "Nagisa let the dog out for a bit yesterday and Akito came by and dognapped him. Nagisa thinks he's been stalking us…" Karma went on to say, but it became harder and harder for Aki to focus on his voice. Karma's voice was only heard as soft murmurs as a familiar figure came into view ahead of her. She stopped in her tracks and her breathing picked up noticeably. 

Karma noticed her lack of input. 

"Aki?" he asked. "What's wrong?" 

For some reason, that time she heard him clearly. Yet her focus was still fully trained on the figure in front of her, causing her immense fear. She felt trapped, even though she was free to take off running in the opposite direction. But what good would that do? She was sure that he would manage to catch her and if he did, who knows what would happen then. 

"He's here…" she choked out quietly. 

"What?! Run! Get the hell out of there!" Karma urged her. Aki, however, found it hard to move. All that she could manage to do was focus on her breathing. If she stayed there then that would lower the risk of her being in serious danger she thought. But what was the right thing to do? What was the right thing to think? When it came to Akito, her thoughts were jumbled, scattered. That's exactly what he wanted. 

Akito stalked closer to her, a sinister smirk playing on his face, sending a shiver down her spine. It was no longer warm around her and she found it harder to breathe with the heavy tension surrounding the area. The air was filled with a familiar chill that threatened to wrap its coils around her and never let go, instead pulling her back into the depths of hell and into the hands of its "God." 

The closer that he got to her, she noticed that there was someone behind him. She couldn't make out who it was but it wasn't until Akito stopped right in front of her that Shigure emerged from behind him. Akito simply plucked the phone out of her hand and hung up the phone, silencing Karma's requests that she flee. 

He dropped her phone onto the ground and stepped on it, the glass crunched under his shoe. 

"It's been far too long, my dear~" he cooed, reaching up to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. At this she stepped back. 

"Hey Aki!" Shigure greeted from behind Akito as if this were a friendly meet up. 

She only glanced at him briefly before turning her attention back to Akito. 

"What do you two want…?" she asked tentatively. 

"Absolutely nothing~ I just like to check on you every now and then~ With how you left me and all, I can't help but be concerned for you~" he said innocently. 

She narrowed her gaze at him. "With the way you treated me, I had no choice but to run. Don't you understand the pain that the others around you experience?!" she yelled, being fed up with him entirely, trying not to let her fear guide her any longer in this moment. 

He raised an eyebrow and then his hand. Before she could blink again, his hand collided with her face and her head jerked in the opposite direction. She blinked back the tears brimming in her eyes. He would've left a visible red mark if not for her dark complexion, but it still stung. She took another step back, eager to get some distance between them, but her attempt was futile. 

“I see that you’ve forgotten not to raise your voice at me…” he said before lowering his head next to her ear. “I know you’ve told a few others about our family~ And after I specifically ordered you not to~ What are you trying to accomplish by doing that, huh~?” she tensed, staying silent while staring at Shigure who had a sickly sweet smile dancing on his face.

Akito stepped back next to Shigure once more with a scowl on his face. “You’re the human I hate the most…” he gritted his teeth before leaving. 

Even after he left, she was afraid to move, but little by little she loosened up and began to walk the other way. The encounter with Akito and Shigure left Aki tearful so instead of going to school, she found herself walking towards Karma’s apartment.

○○○

In no time, Aki was standing in front of Karma’s door. She banged on it and within minutes, it flew open. Karma grabbed her arm and pulled her inside and into his embrace while closing the door behind her.

“Aki? Aki!” Nagisa exclaimed, having appeared behind karma. He ran up to the two and looked Aki over closely. “What did he do?!”

“Nothing, nothing,” she sighed. “He just doesn’t want us to forget...the collar that he has around our necks...the control he has over us...this is pure torment,” she choked out exasperatedly, walking towards the living room. “Tonight...let’s carry out my plan tonight.”

Karma and Nagisa didn’t say a word, they only looked at her. Their expressions were blank and she wondered if they even heard her until Karma spoke up.

“You don’t think it’s too soon?”

“Well...a little...but this can’t go on,” she turned to Nagisa. “I-I thought of a different plan similar to the one I proposed before. This one might just work.”

Nagisa was hesitant to go through with any plan to take care of Akito, but the memories of his time with him and being used in general flooded his mind. That’s not who Nagisa was; he wouldn’t let people continue to have power over how he felt. Something needed to happen.

“Let’s hear it,” Nagisa spoke.

Aki smiled. “Alright, so tonight you’ll go to the Sohma estate, find Akito and pretend that you’re going back to him, but you have to make it believable. Assuming that he’ll believe you and let you stay, when the time is right, I'll sneak into the room and hug you so that you can transform. Then it’ll be up to you to bite Akito.”

“Like he’ll just let me,” Nagisa scoffed. “This is risky…”

“I’ll hold him down as long as I can!” Aki assures. “I just really want this to be over for the both of us…”

Nagisa honestly didn’t need anymore convincing. After Kota’s disappearance, he didn’t feel safe in the slightest. Next time, it could be him that’s taken and Nagisa didn’t want to let it get to that point. Aki texted Asano, telling him what happened and that she wouldn’t be at school for that reason. They continued to plan and during that time, she didn’t get a reply.

An hour later, the trio heard a knock at the door. Karma raised an eyebrow as he got up and approached the door. He opened it without any hesitation, ready to take on anything if need be, but he was only met with the strawberry blonde whom he found a nuisance. He smirked.

“It’s not like you to skip class~”


	10. The Fated Couple's Future: The Mystifying Lovers

The night was young, but that didn’t matter because as soon as they blinked, it began to age. Aki filled Asano in on their plan hours ago, so all that was left to do was wait. Wait for the right time to move, to breathe, and to say what could be their final words to each other. 

An hour is all they had left. That’s when they decided would be the time that they left. Nagisa was more on edge than anybody else and Karma picked up on this. He got up off the floor where they were seated and pulled Nagisa up with him and headed back into his room.

“Karma?” Nagisa asked in a shrill voice.

Karma pulled him into a hug. “You don’t have to go through with this…”

“I need to…” Nagisa sighed into Karma’s chest. 

Those words made Karma heart lurch. Nagisa would be going up against someone that he didn't know well. Someone that he was able to beat up, but when he fired an actual gun at the same person, they were able to dodge it with ease. Karma wasn't sure what the outcome would be tonight, but he knew that he had to stand by Nagisa's side and decisions no matter what.

○○○

Nagisa entered the Sohma estate and headed towards Akito's room. He tried to walk quietly given the surrounding silence and the soft murmurs of the crickets and rustling tree leaves outside. It was such a calming setting; too bad that there was a family full of chaos and torment lurking within it all.

He stopped in front of his door and gently tapped on it. He didn't wait for a reply, sliding open the door and walking in. Akito's room was always dark and Nagisa always had a sneaking suspicion that someone or something lurked in the shadows of his room. That someone often being Akito himself. 

It was no surprise when Akito came stalking out of the shadows of the corner of his room. Even though he wasn't taken by surprise, Nagisa nearly jumped out of his skin at the sight of Akito. 

"Nagisa? What is this...?" 

"You should know…you did take my dog…you broke into Karma's apartment…and you made me realize that I am truly meant to be with you…" his voice went from something of a voice that was slightly raised to a voice that was almost a whisper. Nagisa spoke carefully and he didn't let his act falter. Akito knew Nagisa and he'd never think for a second that he'd try anything. He had this. 

Akito raised an eyebrow. "What happened to that red head…?"

"I got rid of him…we got into this really bad argument and…I just couldn't take his bullshit anymore. It was after that that I finally realized all of this. You're the only one that can truly love and protect me," he walked closer to Akito, putting a hand on his chest and looking up into his cold, grey eyes. It was Akito who closed the distance between them. Nagisa was expecting a short kiss, but Akito wanted to take his breath away quite literally. 

When they broke apart, Nagisa was panting. He was still gasping for air when he heard faint whimpers and cries, but they weren't just any whimpers, they were a dog's whimpers. 

"W-What's that noise?" Nagisa tentatively asked, still catching his breath. 

"That insufferable dog…" Akito grimaced. "It has been nothing but trouble and it wouldn't obey me. And you know I'm not fond of people let alone things that I can't control…something that I can't control should be dead," there was nothing but malice lacing his voice. 

Nagisa nodded his head, his face emotionless. His heart was absolutely breaking on the inside. He wanted to scream out Kota's name, run to his side, anything he could do to save him, but in order for the plan to work, he couldn't. He wasn’t ready for the silence that followed. He felt as though his legs were about to give out beneath him so he walked over to the only bed in the room and sat on it. Bombarding Akito with questions when he just got there didn’t seem right, but it was now or never and Nagisa needed answers, not to mention something to think about other than Kota.

“Thinking back to that note, I actually don’t know how my dad’s doing...have you seen him…?”

“I can’t tell you that~ Not even your mother knows~ And I want it to stay that way...not like she cares anyway,” Akito mused. The air became suffocating to Nagisa; he felt like he was drowning.

Akito climbed into bed next to Nagisa and snaked his arms around his small waist, pulling him closer.

"Alright…" Nagisa whispered, not wanting to press further. He hated every second of this and it already felt as if he'd been in that room for hours. 

"I'm glad that you came to your senses~ You'll never be able to escape me and it's a good thing that you came crawling back when you did~ I was about to target your new little bodyguard~ And sooner than you might've thought~"

“I couldn’t care less anymore…” Nagisa admitted while staring into Akito’s eyes. “This is the way things are meant to be.”

At this point, Akito was convinced that Nagisa was all his and under his control once more. He rolled over and climbed on top of Nagisa, letting his hand glide up his chest until it came to rest on Nagisa's small neck. He grasped it and gradually, his hold tightened. All Nagisa thought to do was to keep gazing into Akito's cold, dead eyes. 

Akito lowered his head to Nagisa's neck and bit down into his pale flesh. Nagisa winced, squirming underneath him. It was over as soon as it started, much to Nagisa's surprise. 

When Akito got off the bed, Nagisa sat up and looked over at his retreating figure. 

"Where are you going?"

"To wash up if you don't mind…why don't you stare at the wall until I return?" he walked into the bathroom and shut the door. 

Once Nagisa heard the click of the lock, he slowly got up and approached the bedroom door. He heard the shower water start rushing out of the shower head and took that moment to open the door. Aki, who was crouched down in front of the door, shot up and stepped into the room, closing the door behind herself. 

"Karma and Asano are outside keeping watch," she whispered to him before embracing him. A familiar blue cloud surrounded them and Nagisa disappeared, leaving a small, blue snake in his place. 

Aki looked around and located the bed. As soon as she laid eyes on it, she shuffled over to it and crawled beneath it, all the while still holding Nagisa in her arms.

○○○

"How long do you think this will take?" Asano asked Karma in a hushed tone.

"No idea…" he whispered back. 

Karma felt as if somebody were watching them and it made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He got into a fighting position just in case somebody were to jump out at him. Asano took note of what he was doing and made sure to watch his back. 

"You shouldn't be here…." hissed Hiromi as she came walking from behind a tree. 

Karma glared at her. "And why not?"

"Because you don't belong here…you're far from being a part of this family…" she gasped. "Could it be that my darling Nagisa finally came to his senses and left you?! If so, trying to get him back is futile," she snickered. 

"Quite the opposite, lady~" Karma smirked. 

"What…? But…he's in there, right…?"

"And what if he is?"

"You don't understand! I gave birth to a monster! You hear me?! That child had murderous intent like I've never seen before! He's an absolute disgrace! A disgusting creature! If he came back with no intentions of cooperating with Akito…or even me…" she glares at Karma. "This is all your fault!" she screeched before running towards him, ready to pounce.

○○○

Akito opened the bathroom door, letting the hot, humid air that built up inside of the room free. Immediately after he stepped foot out of the bathroom, he noticed Nagisa's absence. He didn't think anything of it as he walked back over to his bed.

Cold hands grabbed his ankles and pulled him forward, causing him to fall backwards and hit his head on the wooden floor, resulting in a loud thud. Aki wasted no time in climbing from under the bed and onto Akito, sitting on his legs and pinning his arms to the ground. 

"Now, Nagisa!" she shouted. 

"Let go of me!" Akito growled as Nagisa slithered up his chest. Aki tightened her grip and Nagisa didn't hesitate. He bit into Akito's neck then slithered off of him. It was quick; Akito became stiff and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. Aki jumped off him and scooped Nagisa up in her arms, quickly fleeing the room before anyone could find them there.

○○○

“W-Why are you guys all beat up…” Aki asked Karma and Asano as they ran down the dimly lit street.

“We, uh...ran into Nagisa’s mother…” Karma breathed out.

“M-My mother?” Nagisa stopped in his tracks, placing his hands on his knees and attempting to catch his breath.

"Yeah…she took off somewhere. Nagisa…she said she was afraid of you," Karma said, looking at how Nagisa's face took on a frown. 

"Let's go home…" Asano sighed, grabbing Aki's cold hand and walking into the night. Karma and Nagisa followed soon after.

○○○

"Nagi~ What are you doing over there~?" Karma half whined, looking over at Nagisa's hunched over form sitting on the living room floor with a laptop in front of him.

"I have to find out where she went…" he stated, not looking away from what he was doing, his azure eyes scanning every inch of the screen. 

Karma rose from his spot on the couch and walked over to Nagisa who didn't bother to look up or acknowledge Karma coming closer at all. 

Karma leaned down and grabbed the laptop in one swift movement, closing it. Nagisa blinked, a slight pout playing on his face. 

"What the hell, Karma?" he inquired, slightly annoyed. 

"Look, I told you we'd find her when we had things more figured out," he held his right hand out for Nagisa to take, the laptop tucked under his left arm securely. "Let's just get through graduation in one piece and plan from there, alright?" he smirked as Nagisa took his hand and stood up, refusing to meet his gaze. 

"Sorry…It's just…I didn't come so far just for her to wander around freely like this. She could always come back and who knows what then. She's not well. You know this..." he rambled briefly. 

Karma pulled him just a bit closer and pressed a kiss to his forehead, rubbing small circles on the back of Nagisa's hand. He thought back to that night. The night where he had battled Nagisa's crazed mother only for her to flee, the night where Nagisa took the life of his former abusive lover, the night where Nagisa shed so many tears that Karma feared that they'd never stop. It was an endless waterfall, one that him and Karma both were sure to drown in. 

His comfort, his reassuring words, and those calloused hands that would wipe away every tear that descended down from his puffy, red eyes were luckily enough to bring Nagisa back to his normal self. It took time and patience, but they got there. 

Now, it seemed as though Nagisa was dead set on finding his mother's whereabouts, so much that it became more important than taking care of himself. Boy was he lucky to have Karma by his side. He's the one that always made sure Nagisa did what his obsessive searching prevented him from doing. 

"You need to rest every now and again. Preferably in my arms~ With your head resting in the crook of my neck while we watch an old movie~"

Nagisa giggled at the thought. That did sound nice, didn't it? Taking that giggle as some form of the words "I'd like that too," Karma gently pulled him along as he walked to his room. They got settled under the covers and Karma turned on a movie, one that they've both seen before, but one that they never got tired of. There would be the occasional laugh that came from Nagisa and after it had passed, he'd secure the hold he had on Karma's waist, snuggling closer and nestling his head into the crook of his neck while Karma placed a delicate kiss on his head. 

"There's my Nagisa~"

○○○

The entire sky was pitch black; the stars didn’t dare twinkle and the moon rested high in the sky, illuminating the night with its warm glow as two hooded figures ran throughout the streets. They were a skilled and nimble pair, never to work apart. The way they jumped from rooftop to rooftop was agile and quick, but if you had eyes like theirs, it wouldn’t be hard to spot the blue and red strands of hair that would get caught in the cool nights breeze, peeking out from under the very hoods they wore to keep their identities concealed.

"Are you sure the target's inside?" Karma asked, speaking quietly into the hidden microphone sewed onto the inside of his suit jacket. 

"Positive. Proceed with caution," the woman on the other end responded into his earpiece. 

He signaled to Nagisa that the target was inside of the room that they came across. He nodded from his hiding place, tucking his gun away and standing up swiftly. He approached Karma, who had also emerged from his hiding place, and looped his arm around Karma's as he firmly knocked on the door. Any cameras that were on that floor were taken out so they went undetected. They had 20 minutes. 

"Enter," the person who resided inside the room called out. Karma slowly turned the knob with his gloved hand and walked in with Nagisa at his side. 

They walked into the penthouse, not at all stunned by its modern beauty. With its silky black flat screen tvs, crackling stone fireplace, white marble flooring, and a balcony with a view of the mystic blue ocean, they didn't bat an eye. 

"Itsuki, darling, is that-" a woman breathed out, stopping herself as she emerged from one of the many rooms inside the penthouse, a look of absolute shock adorning her face. 

Karma chuckled, clearly amused. "That bastard was last week's target~ Ah, you should've heard the way he screamed~" 

Hiromi dropped the cigarette that rested in between her fingers and took a step back, not noticing that it fell directly onto the carpet she had placed under one of the many tables she had placed against the wall. 

"Hello again mother," Nagisa spoke with malice lacing his voice, his eyes went blank as he reached for the gun he had tucked away in his pants. 

"N-Nagisa! Dear…I-It's so wonderful of you to join me after all this time. Now, why don't you stop whatever it is you're doing and come have a drink with me. Look at all I've been able to accomplish with you gone," she said motioning to the space around her. "I know you must’ve missed me and am dying to stay in such a lovely abode~" she smiled, not noticing the small flames growing from the carpet. 

"I'm not dying to stay here, metaphorically speaking nor have I missed you…you'll be dying quite literally though," not giving her the chance to reply, he pointed the gun at her and pulled the trigger twice, both bullets piercing her chest, the second piercing her heart. He thought he'd miss on purpose the first time so that she could experience a little pain before she died and he was happy to think that she did. 

Karma eyed Nagisa carefully. He thought about completing him on his kill like he always did, but he had just killed his own mother. No matter how much of a crazed bitch she was, she was still his mother. 

"Are you alright…?" he asked instead, the flames on the carpet growing more intense. 

Nagisa didn't know how to answer that question. Was he alright? Honestly, he felt like he was becoming a monster. Hero's that he admired back in middle school would've let their mother's live, instead putting them behind bars or something of the sort. That didn't work for Nagisa back then and he doubted it would work again. He also couldn’t help the thought of his late sensei’s face flashing in his mind. His sensei had been the first person he had ever killed and regrettably so. They were supposed to come close to killing him and drive him mad; the thought of someone always targeting him eating away at his sanity. The day he died, something snapped inside of Nagisa; something that compelled him to kill. 

He cupped Karma's cheek with his hand and brought his face down to his level, capturing his lips in a kiss. It lasted a little longer than it should've because when they broke apart, the flames were only inches away from them. Nagisa admired the raging red flower blossoming inside the penthouse before turning on his heels to make a quick exit, not missing how the flower engulfed his mother's body, emitting the smell of burning flesh. 

"Let's go," he whispered as he grabbed Karma's hand, their fingers intertwining as they quickly left the penthouse, not daring to look back at the past which haunted them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed!~


End file.
